Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) Lowered to "Underperform" Rating by Bank of America

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. They presently have a $220.00 target price on the industrial products company's stock. Bank of America's target price would indicate a potential downside of 9.24% from the company's previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. UBS Group decreased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $257.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $302.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $253.67.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ITW traded down $0.69 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $242.40. The stock had a trading volume of 809,912 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,015,939. The company has a market cap of $71.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.68, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. Illinois Tool Works has a 12 month low of $214.66 and a 12 month high of $279.13. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $243.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $255.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. The company had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of Illinois Tool Works 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares of the company's stock, valued at $68,516,979.20. This trade represents a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total transaction of $11,249,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This represents a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,326,996 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,675,473,000 after purchasing an additional 94,601 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,667,653 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,465,570,000 after buying an additional 508,188 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,392,021 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,620,491,000 after buying an additional 99,753 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,132,493 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,047,837,000 after acquiring an additional 71,934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,443,251 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $873,071,000 after acquiring an additional 95,925 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.77% 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.