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United Rentals

United Rentals soars after execs say tariff turmoil could make renting equipment more attractive

The world’s largest rental company reaffirmed its full-year guidance on expectations that economic uncertainty could jump-start demand.

Nia Warfield

United Rentals shares surged 10% Thursday after the company said it could benefit from ongoing trade turbulence.

United Rentals is the world’s largest equipment rental company, offering a wide range of machinery and tools for construction, industrial, and homeowner projects. Execs say current tariff troubles could work in their favor, since uncertainty often makes renting more appealing than owning.

“The one thing I might add on tariffs and certainly anytime there’s uncertainty, that tends to favor rental over ownership and we never advocate for uncertainty… but there obviously are a couple of things that the macro is trying to struggle with,” Chief Financial Officer Ted Grace said on the earnings call. “So I’d say at the margin that’s also going to benefit rental even more than we think some of the other advantages we have over ownership.”

The company also easily topped Q1 earnings estimates and reaffirmed its full-year guidance for both adjusted EBITDA and revenue. With over 1,100 rental locations across North America, United Rentals is betting that economic hesitation will keep fueling demand for its fleet.

Executives also downplayed cost risks from tariffs, saying capital expenditures for the year are already locked in. Looking ahead to 2026, they plan to lean on suppliers who can sidestep price hikes. Wall Street’s optimistic too, with the stock currently holding an average “buy” rating from analysts polled by FactSet, the highest sentiment since last June.

Shares of United Rentals have fallen about 6% year to date.

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Nike sinks to lowest level since 2014 after warning of “challenged” sales environment in Q4 report

Did Nike do it?

Investors had a mixed reaction after the global sports apparel company reported its fourth quarter earnings on Tuesday after the bell. Shares initially rose 5% as Nike beat out Wall Street expectations amid a hefty tariff refund bonus. However, the stock then sank to its lowest level since August 2014 in postmarket trading.

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  • Revenue of $11.0 billion (estimate: $10.8 billion).

  • Adjusted earnings per share of $0.20 (estimate: $0.12).

Ahead of this report, Nike warned that results would be flattered by a one-time tariff refund (now estimated at roughly $0.52 per share for the bottom line). That gave the company an extra cushion in snapping its streak of seven quarters of year-over-year profit declines.

Over the past year, the company had been punished by tariffs on imported goods, stagnant consumer spending, and increasing competition from other footwear brands like New Balance, Adidas, and Hoka.

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