Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Raises Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,808 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $2,570,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Nikulski Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 3.6% in the third quarter. Nikulski Financial Inc. now owns 1,108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Steele Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Steele Capital Management Inc. now owns 863 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.0% during the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,390 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,178,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% in the third quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 1,609 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 8.1% in the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 614 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE ITW opened at $271.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $257.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $248.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.66 and a twelve month high of $277.58. The company has a market capitalization of $80.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.53, a PEG ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 1.10.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. Illinois Tool Works’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.55 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on ITW. Argus upgraded Illinois Tool Works to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. 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 note on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $256.40.

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.