Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) Hits New 12-Month Low - Here's Why

Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $227.19 and last traded at $231.81, with a volume of 380828 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $239.44.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on ITW shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $265.18.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 7.7 %

The stock has a market cap of $68.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.06, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $254.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $259.67. 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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, research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is 51.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CEO Christopher A. O'herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total transaction of $13,293,565.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. This trade represents a 46.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $68,516,979.20. This represents a 21.20 % 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 worth $42,973,845. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Illinois Tool Works

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pensionfund Sabic increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 37.0% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 7,400 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,876,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $358,321,000 after buying an additional 398,676 shares during the period. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,729,000. Czech National Bank boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 58,265 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $14,774,000 after buying an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 31.6% during the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 15,682 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,976,000 after buying an additional 3,765 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% 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.