Norges Bank Acquires Shares of 3,179,883 Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,179,883 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $806,291,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.08% of Illinois Tool Works at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 7,400 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,876,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% in 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 bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,729,000. Czech National Bank boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 405,817 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $106,352,000 after acquiring an additional 308,935 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher A. O'herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $13,293,565.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. The trade was a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ITW. Truist Financial upped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of 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. Citigroup lowered their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $268.30.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of ITW traded up $1.51 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $249.52. 272,873 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,070,432. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1 year low of $232.77 and a 1 year high of $279.13. The firm's fifty day moving average is $258.24 and its 200-day moving average is $260.83. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $73.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. Illinois Tool Works's 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.