United Capital Management of KS Inc. Raises Stock Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

United Capital Management of KS Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,234 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 908 shares during the quarter. Illinois Tool Works makes up about 1.4% of United Capital Management of KS Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. United Capital Management of KS Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $7,666,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pensionfund Sabic boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 7,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,876,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in 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 last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $1,729,000. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 36,938 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,680,000 after purchasing an additional 3,903 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ITW shares. Truist Financial lifted their target price 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. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $269.10.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 260,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $68,516,979.20. This trade represents a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total transaction of $13,293,565.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. The trade was a 46.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 1.7 %

NYSE ITW opened at $254.72 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $257.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $260.27. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $232.77 and a 12 month high of $279.13. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $74.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.73, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 51.19%.

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.