Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Acquired by Citigroup Inc.

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. increased its stock holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. by 50.5%, owning 371,034 shares valued at approximately $92 million.
• Analysts have set varying price targets for ITW, with Wells Fargo raising it from $235 to $250 while maintaining an "underweight" rating.
• Illinois Tool Works recently announced a dividend increase from $1.50 to $1.61 per share, reflecting a 2.5% yield.

Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 50.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 371,034 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 124,443 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Illinois Tool Works worth $92,020,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 1st quarter worth about $210,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 521,297 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $129,287,000 after acquiring an additional 47,705 shares in the last quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC now owns 2,983 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $740,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. CenterBook Partners LP boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 46.3% in the 1st quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 7,487 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,857,000 after purchasing an additional 2,371 shares during the period. Finally, Arjuna Capital boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 123.1% in the 1st quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 12,833 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,183,000 after purchasing an additional 7,082 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ITW. Citigroup upped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $254.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Bank of America cut Illinois Tool Works from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $220.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $252.00 to $249.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $259.33.

Insider Transactions at Illinois Tool Works

In other news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. purchased 872 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $241.16 per share, with a total value of $210,291.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 122,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,634,705.44. The trade was a 0.71% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of ITW traded up $3.68 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $260.57. 637,766 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,012,164. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.96 billion, a PE ratio of 22.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 1.09. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $214.66 and a fifty-two week high of $279.13. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $252.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $250.05.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 90.89% and a net margin of 21.31%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.54 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $1.61 per share. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from Illinois Tool Works's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.59%.

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.