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United Rentals, Inc. (URI), headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, functions as an equipment rental company. Valued at $41.3 billion by market cap, the company offers a wide range of construction and industrial equipment for rent, sale, and servicing, including general and specialized machinery, tools, safety gear, storage solutions, power and climate control systems, and repair and maintenance services.
Shares of this rental giant have underperformed the broader market over the past year. URI has declined 3% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied nearly 17%. In 2025, URI stock is down 9.3%, compared to SPX’s 1.3% rise on a YTD basis.
Narrowing the focus, URI’s underperformance is also apparent compared to the Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI). The exchange-traded fund has gained about 12.2% over the past year. Moreover, the ETF’s 2.4% gains on a YTD basis outshine the stock’s losses over the same time frame.
On Jan. 29, URI shares closed down more than 1% after reporting its Q4 results. Its adjusted EPS of $11.59 missed Wall Street expectations of $11.77. The company’s revenue was $4.1 billion, beating Wall Street forecasts of $3.9 billion. URI expects full-year revenue to be between $15.6 billion and $16.1 billion.
For fiscal 2025, ending in December, analysts expect URI’s EPS to grow 3.8% to $44.82 on a diluted basis. The company’s earnings surprise history is mixed. It beat the consensus estimates in two of the last four quarters while missing the forecast on two other occasions.
Among the 19 analysts covering URI stock, the consensus is a “Moderate Buy.” That’s based on eight “Strong Buy” ratings, one “Moderate Buy,” seven “Holds,” and three “Strong Sells.”
This configuration is less bearish than two months ago, with four analysts suggesting a “Strong Sell.”
On Feb. 18, Evercore ISI analyst David Raso maintained a “Buy” rating on URI with a price target of $974, implying a robust potential upside of 52.5% from current levels.
The mean price target of $838.56 represents a 31.3% premium to URI’s current price levels. The Street-high price target of $1000 suggests an ambitious upside potential of 56.6%.
