Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Stake Increased by HighPoint Advisor Group LLC

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 21.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,799 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,182 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $4,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ITW. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% in the fourth 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 lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,667,653 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,465,570,000 after buying an additional 508,188 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,392,021 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,620,491,000 after buying an additional 99,753 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.8% in the fourth 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 buying an additional 71,934 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at about $806,291,000. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

NYSE:ITW opened at $256.11 on Monday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1 year low of $214.66 and a 1 year high of $279.13. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $249.03 and a 200-day moving average of $249.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. acquired 872 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $241.16 per share, for a total transaction of $210,291.52. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 122,884 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,634,705.44. This trade represents a 0.71% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $239.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $302.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $237.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $233.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $255.67.

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.

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