Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $217.00 to $215.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.00.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

ITW traded down $5.02 on Thursday, reaching $242.26. The company had a trading volume of 1,198,392 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,176,778. The company has a fifty day moving average of $240.86 and a 200-day moving average of $251.13. The company has a market capitalization of $72.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.89, a PEG ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. Illinois Tool Works has a one year low of $217.50 and a one year high of $271.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.41 EPS. Illinois Tool Works’s revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works will post 10.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Illinois Tool Works news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. acquired 775 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $238.82 per share, with a total value of $185,085.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 121,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,018,062.92. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 6,071 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,590,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the first quarter worth about $1,147,000. Norden Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,889.1% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 26,475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,103,000 after purchasing an additional 25,144 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 213,106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,821,000 after purchasing an additional 12,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 78.3% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 36,921 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,907,000 after purchasing an additional 16,216 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Company 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.