Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Stake Lessened by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund reduced its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 20.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,337 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 12,463 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $11,988,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,519 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,399,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Kovack Advisors Inc. raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 1,753 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 16,884 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,281,000 after buying an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 36,632.9% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 438,591 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $111,209,000 after buying an additional 437,397 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. bought 872 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $241.16 per share, with a total value of $210,291.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 122,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,634,705.44. This trade represents a 0.71% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of ITW traded up $1.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $248.09. The company had a trading volume of 971,319 shares, compared to its average volume of 993,696. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $243.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $249.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $214.66 and a 1-year high of $279.13. The stock has a market cap of $72.69 billion, a PE ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 1.10.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.83 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.37% and a return on equity of 92.77%. Illinois Tool Works's revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.44 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $253.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. 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. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $252.00 to $249.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $239.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $253.42.

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.