Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Position Boosted by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 144.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,638 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,122 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $7,769,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% during 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 in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised 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 valued at $3,465,570,000 after purchasing an additional 508,188 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $1,620,491,000 after purchasing an additional 99,753 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.8% during 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 purchasing an additional 71,934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,443,251 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $873,071,000 after purchasing an additional 95,925 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.4%

ITW traded down $0.90 during trading on Friday, reaching $244.83. The company had a trading volume of 2,390,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,018,444. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $240.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $254.06. The company has a market cap of $71.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.89, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12-month low of $214.66 and a 12-month high of $279.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. Illinois Tool Works's revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.44 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CEO Christopher A. O'herlihy sold 48,453 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total transaction of $13,293,565.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,120,802.68. The trade was a 46.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ITW. Bank of America cut shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. 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 report on Monday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $253.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Three research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average 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.