Verity & Verity LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Verity & Verity LLC raised its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 307.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,366 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 2,540 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $854,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its holdings 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 worth $1,876,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised 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 purchasing an additional 398,676 shares during the period. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter worth about $1,729,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the third quarter worth about $1,179,000. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its position in 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 acquiring an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of ITW stock traded up $0.57 on Friday, reaching $256.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 844,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 768,759. The company has a market capitalization of $75.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.19, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.11. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12-month low of $232.77 and a 12-month high of $279.13. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $264.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $255.59. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.55 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is currently 51.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ITW. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com cut Illinois Tool Works from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $270.11.

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.