Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday morning.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Argus upgraded Illinois Tool Works to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $217.00 to $215.00 and set an underweight rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $281.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned 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 has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $255.22.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

ITW opened at $260.59 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $77.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.55, a PEG ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $250.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $247.65. Illinois Tool Works has a 12-month low of $217.50 and a 12-month high of $271.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.45 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.15% and a return on equity of 99.74%. The business had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. This is a boost from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is currently 58.82%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Illinois Tool Works

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the first quarter worth about $34,000. General Partner Inc. acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.