Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Sold by Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lessened its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 8.7% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 862,761 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 82,354 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $231,506,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $818,408,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 122.7% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 629,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $164,927,000 after purchasing an additional 346,919 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 23,183.6% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 315,260 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $82,579,000 after purchasing an additional 313,906 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 1st quarter worth $65,747,000. Finally, Pinebridge Investments L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 380.7% during the fourth quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 261,590 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $68,521,000 after buying an additional 207,167 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock traded up $3.66 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $247.49. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 882,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,069,821. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $240.92 and a 200-day moving average of $251.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market cap of $73.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $217.50 and a twelve month high of $271.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.07% and a return on equity of 97.82%. The company had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.33 earnings per share. Illinois Tool Works’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.14 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th were issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ITW. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $244.00 to $230.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 20th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price 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. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $229.00 to $217.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $253.30.

Insider Transactions at Illinois Tool Works

In other news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. purchased 775 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 121,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,018,062.92. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

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.