Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 9,593 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its Illinois Tool Works stake by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, buying 9,593 shares and bringing its total holding to 327,574 shares valued at about $80.7 million.
• Illinois Tool Works reported solid quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.66 versus the $2.57 estimate and revenue of $4.02 billion, with revenue up 4.6% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: despite some target price adjustments, the stock’s consensus rating is currently “Reduce,” with an average price target of $270.46.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 327,574 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 9,593 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.11% of Illinois Tool Works worth $80,681,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. MTM Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 70.5% in the third quarter. MTM Investment Management LLC now owns 162 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 219 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITW has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $303.00 to $295.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $284.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wolfe Research raised their target price on shares of 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $270.46.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 1.9%

NYSE:ITW opened at $255.45 on Friday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $238.82 and a twelve month high of $303.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $268.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $262.06.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.36% and a net margin of 19.32%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.38 EPS. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.100-11.500 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 11.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $1.61 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $6.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is currently 59.80%.

Illinois Tool Works Company 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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