Bessemer Group Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Bessemer Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 246,585 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 5,359 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of Illinois Tool Works worth $62,523,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter valued at about $806,291,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $203,949,000. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 263.9% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 903,710 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $229,269,000 after purchasing an additional 655,341 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 36,632.9% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 438,591 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $111,209,000 after buying an additional 437,397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $358,321,000 after purchasing an additional 398,676 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $253.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $257.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $260.09.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of ITW stock traded down $1.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $232.38. 211,548 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,004,117. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $214.66 and a 12 month high of $279.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market cap of $68.17 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $251.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $258.72.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Illinois Tool Works news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 260,224 shares of the company's stock, valued at $68,516,979.20. This trade represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total transaction of $11,249,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. The trade was a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

About Illinois Tool Works

Illinois Tool Works Inc manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment in the United States and internationally. It operates through seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products.