Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Hold" from the twelve analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $265.18.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ITW shares. StockNews.com cut Illinois Tool Works from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $252.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 7.7 %

ITW traded up $16.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $235.16. The stock had a trading volume of 2,113,179 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,001,700. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $253.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $259.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. Illinois Tool Works has a 1-year low of $214.44 and a 1-year high of $279.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works will post 10.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total transaction of $11,249,280.00. Following the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total transaction of $18,431,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $68,516,979.20. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845 in the last three months. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ITW. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 17.5% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 8,043 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,108,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 54.1% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 31,018 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,129,000 after buying an additional 10,888 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,434,001 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,277,127,000 after purchasing an additional 149,272 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 289.6% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 30,201 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $7,915,000 after acquiring an additional 22,449 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 405,817 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $106,352,000 after buying an additional 308,935 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.