Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Decreases Stock Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lessened its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,911 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,011 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $4,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pensionfund Sabic grew its position in Illinois Tool Works by 37.0% during 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 during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 398,676 shares in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,729,000. Czech National Bank increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 58,265 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $14,774,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 11.8% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 36,938 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $9,680,000 after purchasing an additional 3,903 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Illinois Tool Works from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays set a $260.00 target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $257.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $269.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This represents a 45.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now 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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ITW traded up $4.52 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $255.86. The company had a trading volume of 683,841 shares, compared to its average volume of 932,273. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $232.77 and a twelve month high of $279.13. The stock has a market cap of $75.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $258.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $260.57. 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 results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. On average, research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share 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 issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.19%.

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.