Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Sold by Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky trimmed its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 54.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,423 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 24,343 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $5,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,179,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 11.8% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 36,938 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $9,680,000 after purchasing an additional 3,903 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 144,995 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $37,999,000 after purchasing an additional 9,825 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 787.3% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 186,643 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $48,945,000 after purchasing an additional 165,607 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% during 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 purchasing an additional 308,935 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ITW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $230.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $281.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised Illinois Tool Works from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered Illinois Tool Works from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $246.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $267.90.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock traded down $1.06 on Friday, hitting $272.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 536,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,034,999. The company has a market capitalization of $80.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52-week low of $232.77 and a 52-week high of $279.13. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $266.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $252.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

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

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.90%.

Illinois Tool Works 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.