Merit Financial Group LLC Acquires 1,509 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 22.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,242 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,509 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $2,090,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avanza Fonder AB bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,530,000. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 1,711 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $434,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Everpar Advisors LLC increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 2,747 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $697,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 362.2% in the fourth quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 9,188 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,330,000 after buying an additional 7,200 shares during the period. Finally, Goldstone Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $384,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ITW traded up $4.93 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $261.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 478,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 848,274. The company has a market cap of $77.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.11. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $232.77 and a fifty-two week high of $279.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.36. The business's 50 day moving average price is $263.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $255.87.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ITW shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $262.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $270.11.

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.