Start here if you're new
what it is
United Rentals buys construction equipment, rents it out at scale, and then resells older gear before it gets too stale.
how it gets paid
FY 2025 total revenue was about $16.1B. Equipment rentals were $13.81B—about 86% of the year—per the segment table in the Jan 28, 2026 full-year release.
why it's growing
Total revenue rose about 4.9% vs 2024. Q4 2025 revenue was $4.208B (up about 2.8% vs Q4 2024); consolidated gross margin in Q4 was near 38% of revenue using the reported gross profit line.
what just happened
Latest quarter EPS came in at $11.09, about 5.78% below the $11.77 estimate.
At a glance
B+ balance sheet — decent shape, but not bulletproof
85/100 earnings predictability — you can trust these numbers
19.1x trailing p/e — priced about right
1.0% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
15.5% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 59/100 — below average
What they do
United Rentals buys construction equipment, rents it out at scale, and then resells older gear before it gets too stale.
Scale is the whole trick here. United Rentals reported 1,663 rental locations in North America plus additional sites overseas, with rental equipment at original cost near $22.5B—so if your job site needs a boom lift tomorrow, they can usually say yes faster than smaller rivals. That scale creates a cost advantage (economies of scale → bigger fleet spreads costs wider → better pricing power) and helps the company hold roughly 16% share in a fragmented market, based on third-party industry estimates.
How they make money
$16.1B
annual revenue · their business grew about +4.9% vs 2024
Equipment rentals
$13.81B
Sales of rental equipment
$1.41B
Sales of new equipment
$0.35B
Contractor supplies
$0.16B
Service and other
$0.37B
The products that matter
core equipment rental
General Rental
$3.58B in Q4 rental revenue
Q4 2025 rental revenue was $3.581B on $4.208B total revenue—about 85% of the quarter—per the Jan 28, 2026 release.
~85% of Q4 revenue
specialty rentals & services
ProSolutions
margin story, not fully broken out here
it sits inside a company doing about $16.1B in annual revenue; the release breaks out general vs specialty rental revenue within rentals, but this card stays high level.
disclosure gap
used equipment sales and other revenue
Sales & Other
~$627M non-rental Q4 revenue
sales of rental equipment, new equipment, contractor supplies, and service/other summed to about $0.63B in Q4 2025—roughly the remainder after the $3.581B rental line.
~15% of Q4 revenue
Key numbers
19.1x
trailing p/e
You are paying 19.1 times trailing earnings for a cyclical business, while the mean analyst target is $805, or below today’s $816.73 price.
15.5%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit generated from the money tied up in the business → 15.5% says the fleet is producing solid returns, not just sitting in yards.
$12.6B
long-term debt
Debt is fuel and risk. It equals 20% of capital, which looks manageable today, but it still matters when your business depends on expensive machines staying rented.
1.0%
dividend yield
The dividend is basically a side dish. You own URI for earnings power and capital returns, not for income.
Financial health
B+
strength
- balance sheet grade B+ — solid but not elite
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 45 / 100
- long-term debt $12.6B (20% of capital)
- net profit margin 19.3% — keeps 19 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 24% — $0.24 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B+ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in URI 3 years ago → it's now worth $24,040.
The index would have given you $13,920.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
missed estimates
Latest quarter EPS came in at $11.09, about 5.78% below the $11.77 estimate.
Q4 2025 total revenue was $4.208B (up about 2.8% vs Q4 2024). Consolidated gross profit was $1.592B in the quarter—about 37.8% of revenue using those reported lines. Adjusted EPS was $11.09 vs $11.77 consensus (Jan 28, 2026 materials).
$4.21B
Q4 revenue
$11.09
adj. EPS
~38%
Q4 gross margin
the number that mattered
The 5.78% EPS miss matters because URI is already priced at 19.1x trailing earnings, so you do not have much room for sloppy quarters.
-
management raised its 2025 revenue outlook for equipment leasing giant united rentals in late october.
-
leadership upped its target range to between $16.0 billion and $16.2 billion, representing an increase of 4.2%–5.5% over 2024’s $15.35 billion tally.
-
previously, the connecticut-based company was eying revenue of $15.8 billion–$16.1 billion and top-line growth of 2.9%–4.9% on the year.the slightly more positive stance primarily reflects the company’s recent success at winning work on large construction projects. given its ability to offer end-to-end solutions, united rentals appears to be capturing more than its fair share of mega projects, be it the build out of ai data centers or new sports stadiums. that said, strength in the number of large rental contracts, coupled with generally weak leasing demand on the local level, has recently necessitated more-substantial repositioning of the company’s equipment fleet. and, while transportation service is a revenue stream for united rentals, it is typically one that is outsourced to third-party providers and is a drag on profit margins.
-
the company still has plenty of room to grow.
-
while united rentals remains the undisputed industry leader, it recently commanded little more than a 16% share of the overall north american equipment leasing market.
P0: United Rentals Q4 & FY 2025 release (Jan 28, 2026) — investors.unitedrentals.com
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is an antitrust challenge to rental pricing while URI is trying to absorb H&E.
high
antitrust lawsuit
a lawsuit filed in april 2025 alleges coordinated pricing among equipment rental companies in a $100B+ industry.
if pricing conduct gets constrained, the 25.2% EBIT margin is the part of the story that gets tested first.
high
H&E acquisition integration
the planned $2.3B acquisition adds scale, but it also adds execution risk, regulatory review, and one more moving part in an already cyclical business.
$2.3B is about 14% of annual revenue. if integration slips, you're paying a lot of capital for a messy quarter.
med
construction and industrial slowdown
this is still a fleet business tied to physical project activity. when job starts slow, equipment sits.
with 85% of the latest quarter's revenue tied to equipment rental, weaker utilization would hit the core engine directly.
med
local-market softness under the surface
management commentary points to strength in large projects and weaker local leasing demand. that's a mixed signal, not a clean all-clear.
if mega-project demand cools before local demand recovers, recent guidance strength can fade quickly.
between the antitrust case and the $2.3B H&E deal, URI is defending its pricing power while committing capital equal to roughly 14% of annual revenue.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
legal
antitrust case milestones
any dismissal, settlement, or adverse ruling matters because the margin premium depends on pricing discipline staying intact.
deal
H&E close timing
watch when the $2.3B acquisition actually closes and what management says about branch overlap, synergies, and integration costs.
cash flow
buyback pace versus free cash flow
management plans $1.5B of repurchases in 2026. if buybacks slow while free cash flow softens, confidence just became a data point.
demand
large projects versus local rentals
the company is winning big-project work, but local demand has been weaker. you want both engines running, not one covering for the other.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
85 / 100
management's numbers usually land close to expectations. in human-speak: this is not a chronic surprise machine.
risk rank
3
that puts URI around the market's middle on safety. steadier than a speculative stock, less defensive than a true shelter.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 3 consecutive quarters — 692 buyers vs. 556 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 58.6M shares. net buying for 3 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$607
$1354
$817
current price
$805
target midpoint · 1% from current · 3-5yr high: $965 (+20% · 5% ann'l return)
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