Rafferty Asset Management LLC Grows Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 25,101 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,448 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $6,365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth $677,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 48.7% during the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 46,138 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $11,699,000 after acquiring an additional 15,120 shares in the last quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,006,000. Man Group plc lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 45.1% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 35,376 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,970,000 after purchasing an additional 10,999 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC increased its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 44.4% in the fourth quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 12,252 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,107,000 after buying an additional 3,766 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $237.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird boosted 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 report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $253.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher A. O'herlihy sold 48,453 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $13,293,565.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,120,802.68. This trade represents a 46.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

ITW stock traded down $5.21 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $244.73. The company had a trading volume of 772,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,021,674. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $214.66 and a 1-year high of $279.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $241.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $255.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market cap of $71.71 billion, a PE ratio of 20.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.83 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current 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 is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.77%.

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.