Pacer Advisors Inc. Acquires 462 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 9.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,385 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $3,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in United Rentals by 13.7% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 4,981 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,221,000 after buying an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its holdings in United Rentals by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 12,087 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $7,817,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in United Rentals by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 11,114 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $7,189,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in United Rentals by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 26,901 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $17,397,000 after acquiring an additional 723 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in United Rentals by 11.8% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 9,217 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,961,000 after purchasing an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on URI. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $800.00 to $910.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays lifted their price target on United Rentals from $400.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Argus increased their price objective on United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup cut their target price on United Rentals from $985.00 to $835.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $658.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $813.73.

United Rentals Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE URI opened at $774.50 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.23, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.77. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $596.48 and a one year high of $896.98. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $766.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $768.75.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.65 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a net margin of 17.12% and a return on equity of 34.73%. As a group, analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.83%.

About United Rentals

United Rentals, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental company. It operates in two segments, General Rentals and Specialty. The General Rentals segment rents general construction and industrial equipment includes backhoes, skid-steer loaders, forklifts, earthmoving equipment, and material handling equipment; aerial work platforms, such as boom and scissor lifts; and general tools and light equipment comprising pressure washers, water pumps, and power tools for construction and industrial companies, manufacturers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners, and government entities.