TLDR
- United Rentals posted Q1 EPS of $9.71, beating the $8.95 analyst estimate
- Q1 revenue came in at $3.99 billion, up 8.7% year-over-year and above the $3.87B consensus
- Full-year revenue guidance raised to $16.9B–$17.4B, up from prior $16.8B–$17.3B range
- Growth was driven by nonresidential construction, infrastructure, power, and mining
- Bernstein reiterated an Outperform rating, with URI delivering a 37% return over the past year
United Rentals posted a strong first quarter, beating Wall Street on both earnings and revenue, and the stock rewarded investors fast.
UNITED RENTALS $URI Q1’26 EARNINGS HIGHLIGHTS
🔹 Revenue: $3.99B (Est. $3.87B) 🟢
🔹 Adj. EPS: $9.71 (Est. $8.95) 🟢
🔹 Rental revenue: $3.419B; +8.7% Y/Y
🔹 Adj. EBITDA: $1.759B; margin 44.1%
🔹 Free cash flow: $1.054BFY Guide:
🔹 Revenue: $16.9B to $17.4B (Est. $17.073B) 🟡… pic.twitter.com/lNC96S6EmQ— Wall St Engine (@wallstengine) April 22, 2026
URI jumped roughly 20% on Thursday to around $960, making it the top performer in the S&P 500 for the session. It’s now up 32% in April alone and 19% year-to-date.
Q1 adjusted EPS came in at $9.71, topping the analyst consensus of $8.95 by $0.76. That compares to $8.86 a share in the same period last year. Revenue hit $3.99 billion, up 8.7% from $3.72 billion a year ago, and ahead of the $3.87 billion estimate.
Rental revenue — the core of the business — climbed to $3.42 billion, up from $3.15 billion in Q1 2025 and a new first-quarter record. Average original equipment cost rose 5.7%, and total fleet productivity improved 2.3%.
CEO Matthew Flannery said growth came from across the board. Nonresidential construction and infrastructure led the way on the construction side, while power, mining, and minerals were the standouts in the industrial segment.
New construction projects in healthcare, data centers, manufacturing, and infrastructure all contributed to the quarter’s performance.
Guidance Gets a Lift
United Rentals raised its full-year revenue outlook to between $16.9 billion and $17.4 billion, up from the prior range of $16.8B to $17.3B. The midpoint of $17.15 billion edges above the Wall Street consensus of $17.07 billion.
Adjusted EBITDA guidance was narrowed to $7.625B–$7.875B, from the previous $7.575B–$7.825B range. Free cash flow guidance was left unchanged at $2.15B–$2.45B.
Flannery told analysts the year is “playing out better than we expected just a few months ago,” adding that feedback from the field remains optimistic, especially for large projects.
FIFA World Cup a Factor
One item Flannery flagged specifically: the 2026 FIFA World Cup. United Rentals expects to be “a key partner” for the tournament starting in Q2.
Construction work is already underway across U.S., Mexican, and Canadian host cities, covering stadium conversions to FIFA-compliant fields and broader infrastructure upgrades.
Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter came in at $1.76 billion, 5% above consensus. General Rentals gross margins were 33.8%, about 180 basis points above street estimates. Specialty gross margins of 41.4% were roughly 200 basis points below expectations, though Specialty rental revenues still beat by 5%.
Bernstein SocGen Group reiterated its Outperform rating on URI following the results, maintaining a price target of $903. The stock’s current price of around $960 puts it well above that target after Thursday’s move.
URI’s market cap sits at approximately $50.5 billion, and the stock has now returned around 37% over the past twelve months.
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