Mechanics Bank Trust Department Cuts Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Key Points

• The Mechanics Bank Trust Department reduced its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. by 30.7%, owning 2,187 shares worth $541,000 after selling 970 shares during Q2.
• Illinois Tool Works declared a new quarterly dividend of $1.61 per share, up from $1.50, representing an annual yield of 2.5%.
• Wall Street analysts show a mixed outlook on ITW, with a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a target price of $260.67 after several price increases from multiple brokerages.

Mechanics Bank Trust Department reduced its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 30.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,187 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 970 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the first quarter valued at $214,000. OneAscent Financial Services LLC raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 25.8% in the 1st quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 1,664 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $416,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 848 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $210,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the first quarter worth approximately $946,000. Finally, Advisory Alpha LLC bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the first quarter worth approximately $259,000. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ITW. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Citigroup increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $254.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Barclays increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $265.00 price target on Illinois Tool Works and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $260.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Randall J. Scheuneman sold 6,802 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.08, for a total value of $1,803,074.16. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,314 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,734,035.12. This represents a 39.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of ITW opened at $261.07 on Tuesday. 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 capitalization of $76.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 1.10. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $261.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $250.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.02. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.31% and a return on equity of 90.89%. The firm had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.54 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.350-10.550 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from Illinois Tool Works's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is presently 52.59%.

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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