Davis R M Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Davis R M Inc. raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,641 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 126 shares during the period. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,430,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its position 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 valued at $1,876,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter valued at $1,729,000. Czech National Bank boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 58,265 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,774,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 3rd quarter worth $1,179,000. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup decreased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $269.10.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 4.7 %

NYSE:ITW opened at $255.05 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $257.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $260.36. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $232.77 and a 1-year high of $279.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.76, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is presently 51.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This represents a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at $68,516,979.20. This trade represents a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

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.