Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 57,002 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 6.1% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 996,014 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 57,002 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $862,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC grew its position in United Rentals by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,416,568 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,956,768,000 after acquiring an additional 85,325 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of United Rentals by 82,462.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,606,661 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,300,962,000 after buying an additional 1,604,715 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of United Rentals by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,566,802 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,264,326,000 after buying an additional 9,256 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of United Rentals by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 704,145 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $570,167,000 after buying an additional 66,957 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of United Rentals by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 438,427 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $355,007,000 after buying an additional 5,325 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of United Rentals stock opened at $786.30 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $51.60 billion, a PE ratio of 20.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.66. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $504.65 and a 52 week high of $896.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $834.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $746.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $11.80 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.49 by ($0.69). The business had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 17.12% and a return on equity of 34.73%. The business’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $11.73 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 17.03%.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In related news, SVP Anthony S. Leopold sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $823.24, for a total transaction of $740,916.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,682,702.56. This trade represents a 30.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on URI shares. Argus upped their price target on United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on United Rentals from $954.00 to $955.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America upped their price target on United Rentals from $800.00 to $910.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on United Rentals from $565.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on United Rentals from $955.00 to $985.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $770.00.

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.