New York State Teachers Retirement System Lowers Stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

New York State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 1.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 193,082 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,067 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.07% of Illinois Tool Works worth $47,886,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,519 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,399,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,509,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 6,899 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,758,000 after acquiring an additional 1,269 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 14,098 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,575,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,643 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,431,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. bought 872 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $241.16 per share, for a total transaction of $210,291.52. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 122,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,634,705.44. The trade was a 0.71% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ITW. Bank of America downgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $220.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $253.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $239.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $252.58.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 3.2%

ITW stock traded up $7.87 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $255.12. The company had a trading volume of 1,317,758 shares, compared to its average volume of 994,737. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.44, a PEG ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52-week low of $214.66 and a 52-week high of $279.13. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $244.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $249.62.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.83 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.44 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.77%.

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.