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HRI vs URI
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Herc Holdings Inc. (HRI) vs. United Rentals, Inc. (URI) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- HRI has delivered stronger year-to-date performance at +24.7%, rebounding from a 52-week low earlier this year, while URI is up just +0.6% YTD amid recent sector pressures.
- URI maintains market dominance as the world's largest equipment rental company with a $51 billion market cap, dwarfing HRI's $3.7 billion.
- Both stocks operate in the equipment rental sector, facing similar influences from construction demand and economic cycles, but URI shows superior long-term returns (170% over 5 years vs. HRI's 30%).
- Analysts rate HRI a strong buy with ~50% upside to average price targets around $168, compared to URI's more stable but lower relative growth expectations.
- Recent developments include URI's AI-powered equipment tools and HRI's 2026 EBITDA guidance, signaling operational enhancements for both.
Introduction
Herc Holdings Inc. (HRI) and United Rentals, Inc. (URI) are key players in the North American equipment rental industry, serving construction, industrial, and infrastructure projects. This comparison analyzes their business models, recent market performance, and positioning amid fluctuating demand from economic cycles and interest rates. Traders seeking short-term momentum and investors eyeing long-term industrials exposure will find value in understanding their relative strengths, such as scale versus growth potential, in today's environment of moderating construction activity.
HRI Overview and Recent Performance
Herc Holdings Inc. (HRI), the third-largest equipment rental provider in North America, focuses on renting aerial, earthmoving, and material handling equipment. In recent market activity, HRI shares traded around $111, recovering from a 52-week low near $96 earlier in the month amid broader sector weakness. Year-to-date gains stand at +24.7%, supported by full-year 2025 rental revenues of $3.77 billion and adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) of $1.82 billion. Sentiment has been buoyed by 2026 guidance and analyst upgrades, though high debt levels and low profit margins remain concerns influencing volatility.
URI Overview and Recent Performance
United Rentals, Inc. (URI), the global leader in equipment rental with an extensive network, caters to diverse sectors including general industrial and specialty rentals. Shares recently hovered near $812, down from 52-week highs above $1,000, reflecting a 13% pullback over recent weeks ahead of Q1 earnings. YTD performance is modest at +0.6%, but multi-year trends remain robust with Q4 2025 revenues of $4.21 billion and EPS of $11.09. Innovations like the AI-powered Equipment Agent have lifted sentiment, countering softer revenue trends and positioning URI for steady demand recovery.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
Both HRI and URI thrive on construction and infrastructure demand, but URI's vast scale—nearly three times HRI's fleet—drives superior network efficiency and pricing power. Growth drivers diverge: HRI pursues synergies from fleet optimization, while URI leverages tech integrations like telematics. Recent momentum favors HRI's YTD rebound, but URI's 1-year +39% outpaces HRI's +4%, reflecting greater stability. Risk factors include cyclical exposure and high leverage (HRI's debt/equity at 497%), with URI's lower PE of 21 signaling better value versus HRI's elevated multiple. Market sentiment tilts toward URI's leadership amid economic uncertainty.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron’s AI models currently lean toward URI with higher probability for sustained upside, driven by its dominant positioning, consistent multi-year trends, reasonable valuation, and catalysts like upcoming earnings and tech advancements. HRI offers rebound potential but trails in scale and stability. This assessment reflects observable patterns as of recent data, subject to market evolution.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full Disclaimers and Limitations.
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is HRI is a Buy and URI is a StrongBuy.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
HRI’s FA Score shows that 1 FA rating(s) are green whileURI’s FA Score has 3 green FA rating(s).
- HRI’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- URI’s FA Score: 3 green, 2 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
HRI’s TA Score shows that 4 TA indicator(s) are bullish while URI’s TA Score has 5 bullish TA indicator(s).
- HRI’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 3 bearish.
- URI’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 4 bearish.
Price Growth
HRI (@Finance/Rental/Leasing) experienced а +2.77% price change this week, while URI (@Finance/Rental/Leasing) price change was +7.24% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Finance/Rental/Leasing industry was -0.09%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was -2.85%, and the average quarterly price growth was +18.92%.
Reported Earning Dates
HRI is expected to report earnings on Jul 16, 2026.
URI is expected to report earnings on Jul 29, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Finance/Rental/Leasing (-0.09% weekly)A leasing company (e.g. United Rentals, Inc. ) is typically the legal owner of the asset for the duration of the lease, while the lessee has operating control over the asset while also having some share of the economic risks and returns from the change in the valuation of the underlying asset. Per capita disposable income and corporate earnings or cash flow could be some of the critical metrics for this business – the higher the values of these metrics, the potentially greater ability of consumers/businesses to afford apartments/office spaces for rent. Other finance companies include credit/debit card payment processing companies (e.g. Visa Inc. and Mastercard), private label credit cards providers (e.g. Synchrony Financial) and automobile finance companies (e.g. Credit Acceptance Corporation).
| HRI | URI | HRI / URI | |
| Capitalization | 4.56B | 66.9B | 7% |
| EBITDA | 1.66B | 7.21B | 23% |
| Gain YTD | -6.979 | 32.504 | -21% |
| P/E Ratio | 4153.67 | 27.29 | 15,222% |
| Revenue | 4.61B | 16.4B | 28% |
| Total Cash | 43M | 156M | 28% |
| Total Debt | 9.64B | 15B | 64% |
HRI | URI | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 50 | 50 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 97 Overvalued | 91 Overvalued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 83 | 18 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 92 | 35 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 48 | 11 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 1 | 19 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 38 | 65 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
URI's Valuation (91) in the Finance Or Rental Or Leasing industry is in the same range as HRI (97). This means that URI’s stock grew similarly to HRI’s over the last 12 months.
URI's Profit vs Risk Rating (18) in the Finance Or Rental Or Leasing industry is somewhat better than the same rating for HRI (83). This means that URI’s stock grew somewhat faster than HRI’s over the last 12 months.
URI's SMR Rating (35) in the Finance Or Rental Or Leasing industry is somewhat better than the same rating for HRI (92). This means that URI’s stock grew somewhat faster than HRI’s over the last 12 months.
URI's Price Growth Rating (11) in the Finance Or Rental Or Leasing industry is somewhat better than the same rating for HRI (48). This means that URI’s stock grew somewhat faster than HRI’s over the last 12 months.
HRI's P/E Growth Rating (1) in the Finance Or Rental Or Leasing industry is in the same range as URI (19). This means that HRI’s stock grew similarly to URI’s over the last 12 months.
| HRI | URI | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 4 days ago 80% | 3 days ago 70% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 79% | 3 days ago 61% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 78% | 3 days ago 75% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 78% | 3 days ago 73% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 76% | 3 days ago 73% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 76% | 3 days ago 73% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 4 days ago 74% | 4 days ago 73% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 6 days ago 76% | 20 days ago 68% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | N/A | 3 days ago 63% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 70% | 3 days ago 72% |
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