Barclays Cuts Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) Price Target to $265.00

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) had its price objective decreased by Barclays from $270.00 to $265.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the industrial products company's stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $262.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $246.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $268.00.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE:ITW traded down $0.93 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $247.66. 1,080,596 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 834,319. Illinois Tool Works has a 52-week low of $232.77 and a 52-week high of $279.13. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $266.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $254.90. The firm has a market cap of $73.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.55 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works will post 10.13 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm 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 yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.90%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Illinois Tool Works

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 261.4% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 159 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.