QRG Capital Management Inc. Buys 84 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,469 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $3,192,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cardinal Capital Management lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 0.6% in the second quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 39,313 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,370,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 7.2% in the second quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,095 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Berkshire Bank lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 6.4% in the second quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 4,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $983,000 after buying an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,235 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,899,000 after acquiring an additional 307 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 8,756 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,075,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Illinois Tool Works

In related news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. acquired 775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $238.82 per share, for a total transaction of $185,085.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 121,506 shares in the company, valued at $29,018,062.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Argus upgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $250.75.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock traded down $0.56 on Friday, reaching $239.21. 652,590 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,168,759. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.30. The firm has a market cap of $71.38 billion, a PE ratio of 23.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $240.94 and its 200-day moving average is $250.46. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $217.50 and a one year high of $271.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.45 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 99.74% and a net margin of 19.15%. The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.41 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is presently 59.17%.

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.