Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Stake Raised by Ieq Capital LLC

Ieq Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 15.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,921 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 3,560 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $6,826,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ITW. State Street Corp increased its stake in 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 worth $3,277,127,000 after acquiring an additional 149,272 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,292,268 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,645,972,000 after purchasing an additional 167,422 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 4.2% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,347,326 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $877,234,000 after buying an additional 135,023 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 1.8% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,849,448 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $484,685,000 after buying an additional 32,656 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.0% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,757,245 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $460,533,000 after acquiring an additional 17,139 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 0.5 %

Illinois Tool Works stock traded down $1.25 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $264.30. The stock had a trading volume of 918,393 shares, compared to its average volume of 965,335. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $257.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $258.12. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $232.77 and a 12 month high of $279.13. The stock has a market cap of $77.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.55, a P/E/G ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.11.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.41 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is currently 51.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ITW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays dropped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $262.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $269.30.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total transaction of $18,431,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at $68,516,979.20. This represents a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works 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.