MetLife Investment Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Key Points

• MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 2.3%, holding 74,610 shares worth approximately $18.50 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Illinois Tool Works has recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $1.50 to $1.61 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 2.4%.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Illinois Tool Works, with one Buy rating, eight Hold ratings, and three Sell ratings, while the average target price is set at $260.67.

MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,610 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,777 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $18,504,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jump Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1,093.1% in the first quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 23,934 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,936,000 after acquiring an additional 21,928 shares during the last quarter. Biondo Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 4.2% in the first quarter. Biondo Investment Advisors LLC now owns 40,885 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $10,140,000 after acquiring an additional 1,641 shares during the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 3.9% in the first quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 177,124 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $43,929,000 after acquiring an additional 6,652 shares during the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 11.6% in the first quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 23,541 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,931,000 after acquiring an additional 2,453 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 661,300.0% in the first quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 6,614 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,640,000 after acquiring an additional 6,613 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on ITW shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Citigroup increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $254.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Bank of America cut Illinois Tool Works from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $220.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $260.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. purchased 872 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $241.16 per share, with a total value of $210,291.52. Following the transaction, the director owned 122,884 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,634,705.44. This 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 the SEC website. Insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:ITW traded down $1.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $264.73. 963,377 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 926,250. The firm has a market cap of $77.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.73 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $258.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $250.70. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $214.66 and a 1-year high of $279.13. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 90.89% and a net margin of 21.31%.Illinois Tool Works's quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.54 EPS. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.350-10.550 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $1.61 dividend. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This is an increase from Illinois Tool Works's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is currently 52.59%.

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.