Empowered Funds LLC Raises Stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 42.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,986 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 11,663 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $10,217,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,364,053 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,171,006,000 after buying an additional 51,654 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,702,683 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $640,425,000 after acquiring an additional 62,645 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 9.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,527,637 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $361,998,000 after purchasing an additional 133,853 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 802,886 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $210,447,000 after acquiring an additional 35,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 7.3% during the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 742,941 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $176,047,000 after purchasing an additional 50,753 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 0.3 %

Illinois Tool Works stock traded up $0.75 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $270.62. The stock had a trading volume of 913,018 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,057,239. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $260.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $248.90. The company has a market capitalization of $79.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.41, a PEG ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $232.77 and a 12 month high of $277.58.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 97.06%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ITW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Argus raised shares of Illinois Tool Works to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $257.30.

Illinois Tool Works Company Profile

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.