Equipment rental company United Rentals (NYSE: URI) reported Q2 CY2026 results beating Wall Street’s revenue expectations, with sales up 11.8% year on year to $4.41 billion. The company’s full-year revenue guidance of $17.65 billion at the midpoint came in 2.2% above analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $12.76 per share was 10.1% above analysts’ consensus estimates.
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United Rentals (URI) Q2 CY2026 Highlights:
- Revenue: $4.41 billion vs analyst estimates of $4.20 billion (11.8% year-on-year growth, 4.9% beat)
- Adjusted EPS: $12.76 vs analyst estimates of $11.59 (10.1% beat)
- Adjusted EBITDA: $2.06 billion vs analyst estimates of $1.91 billion (46.6% margin, 7.7% beat)
- The company lifted its revenue guidance for the full year to $17.65 billion at the midpoint from $17.15 billion, a 2.9% increase
- EBITDA guidance for the full year is $8.05 billion at the midpoint, above analyst estimates of $7.80 billion
- Operating Margin: 25.8%, in line with the same quarter last year
- Free Cash Flow Margin: 2.2%, similar to the same quarter last year
- Market Capitalization: $63.49 billion
Company Overview
Owning the largest rental fleet in the world, United Rentals (NYSE: URI) provides equipment rental and related services to construction, industrial, and infrastructure industries.
Revenue Growth
A company’s long-term sales performance can indicate its overall quality. Even a bad business can shine for one or two quarters, but a top-tier one grows for years. Luckily, United Rentals’s sales grew at an exceptional 13.8% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. Its growth beat the average industrials company and shows its offerings resonate with customers, a helpful starting point for our analysis.
Long-term growth is the most important, but within industrials, a half-decade historical view may miss new industry trends or demand cycles. United Rentals’s recent performance shows its demand has slowed significantly as its annualized revenue growth of 6.8% over the last two years was well below its five-year trend. 
This quarter, United Rentals reported year-on-year revenue growth of 11.8%, and its $4.41 billion of revenue exceeded Wall Street’s estimates by 4.9%.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 6% over the next 12 months, similar to its two-year rate. This projection doesn’t excite us and implies its newer products and services will not lead to better top-line performance yet. At least the company is tracking well in other measures of financial health.
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Operating Margin
United Rentals’s operating margin has more or less stayed the same over the last 12 months , averaging 26.1% over the last five years. This profitability was elite for an industrials business thanks to its efficient cost structure and economies of scale. This is seen in its fast historical revenue growth and healthy gross margin, which is why we look at all three data points together.
Looking at the trend in its profitability, United Rentals’s operating margin might have fluctuated slightly but has generally stayed the same over the last five years. We like to see margin expansion, but United Rentals’s performance still shows it’s one of the better Specialty Equipment Distributors companies as most peers saw their margins plummet.
This quarter, United Rentals generated an operating margin profit margin of 25.8%, in line with the same quarter last year. This indicates the company’s cost structure has recently been stable.
Earnings Per Share
We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) for the same reason as long-term revenue growth. Compared to revenue, however, EPS highlights whether a company’s growth is profitable.
United Rentals’s EPS grew at 19.5% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years, higher than its 13.8% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.
We can take a deeper look into United Rentals’s earnings quality to better understand the drivers of its performance. A five-year view shows that United Rentals has repurchased its stock, shrinking its share count by 13.9%. This tells us its EPS outperformed its revenue not because of increased operational efficiency but financial engineering, as buybacks boost per share earnings. 
Like with revenue, we analyze EPS over a shorter period to see if we are missing a change in the business.
For United Rentals, its two-year annual EPS growth of 2.8% was lower than its five-year trend. This wasn’t great, but at least the company was successful in other measures of financial health.
In Q2, United Rentals reported adjusted EPS of $12.76, up from $10.47 in the same quarter last year. This print easily cleared analysts’ estimates, and shareholders should be content with the results. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects United Rentals’s full-year EPS to grow 10.9% from $45.26 to $50.20.
Key Takeaways from United Rentals’s Q2 Results
We were impressed by how significantly United Rentals blew past analysts’ EBITDA expectations this quarter. We were also excited its revenue outperformed Wall Street’s estimates by a wide margin. Zooming out, we think this quarter featured some important positives. The stock traded up 10.7% to $1,145 immediately after reporting.
Sure, United Rentals had a solid quarter, but if we look at the bigger picture, is this stock a buy? When making that decision, it’s important to consider its valuation, business qualities, as well as what has happened in the latest quarter. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
