Legal & General Group Plc Buys 77,525 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 4.0%, purchasing 77,525 shares to own 2,031,123 shares (about 0.70% of the company) valued at approximately $529.64 million.
• Significant insider selling occurred: EVP Axel Beck sold 4,223 shares (~$1.23M) and Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 167,345 shares (~$48.69M), reducing their holdings by roughly 42.2% and 39.3%, respectively.
• Illinois Tool Works beat quarterly estimates with EPS of $2.72 (vs. $2.69) and revenue of $4.09B (+4.1% y/y), set FY2026 guidance of $11.00–$11.40 EPS, and announced a $1.61 quarterly dividend (2.4% yield).

Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,031,123 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 77,525 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.70% of Illinois Tool Works worth $529,636,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 9.3% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 181,866 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $47,449,000 after acquiring an additional 15,485 shares during the period. Inceptionr LLC acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the third quarter worth approximately $339,000. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,672,289 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $434,411,000 after purchasing an additional 97,171 shares in the last quarter. Certified Advisory Corp acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter valued at $432,000. Finally, PFG Advisors increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 11,698 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,050,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Illinois Tool Works news, EVP Axel Beck sold 4,223 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.22, for a total value of $1,225,599.06. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,789 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,680,083.58. The trade was a 42.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 167,345 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.93, for a total value of $48,685,680.85. Following the sale, the director directly owned 258,766 shares in the company, valued at $75,282,792.38. This trade represents a 39.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of ITW opened at $273.16 on Wednesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $214.66 and a 12 month high of $303.15. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $273.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $260.61. The company has a market cap of $78.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.04, a P/E/G ratio of 14.80 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.03. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.11% and a return on equity of 95.16%. The business had revenue of $4.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.54 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.000-11.400 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $1.61 dividend. This represents a $6.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is 61.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Bank of America raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $220.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Evercore cut their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $261.00 to $253.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research upped their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $275.69.

Illinois Tool Works Profile

Illinois Tool Works Inc (ITW) is a diversified industrial manufacturer that designs and produces a broad array of engineered products, consumables and related service solutions for industrial customers. Its offerings span engineered fastening systems, specialty components, industrial equipment, welding products, foodservice and packaging equipment, adhesives and polymer products, and test-and-measurement technologies. These products are used as critical inputs by customers across automotive, construction, electronics, foodservice, maintenance and other industrial end markets.

The company operates a decentralized business model in which independently managed businesses focus on niche product lines and close customer relationships.

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