Sterling Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Key Points

• Sterling Capital Management LLC sharply increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works, boosting holdings by 366.1% in the first quarter to 24,440 shares worth about $6.36 million.
• Illinois Tool Works reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with EPS of $2.66 versus estimates of $2.57 and revenue of $4.02 billion, up 4.6% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.61 per share, implying an annualized yield of 2.4%, while Wall Street currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” with a target price of $271.92.

Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 366.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,440 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 19,197 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $6,361,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings 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. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 3,555 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $901,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 20.6% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,038 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 22.0% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 106,784 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $26,401,000 after purchasing an additional 19,248 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.2% in the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 136,884 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $33,845,000 after buying an additional 2,890 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, Director Jennifer F. Scanlon bought 806 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $247.99 per share, for a total transaction of $199,879.94. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,652 shares of the company's stock, valued at $409,679.48. This represents a 95.27% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

ITW opened at $268.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.90, a PEG ratio of 4.60 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average of $257.99 and a 200 day moving average of $264.03. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $238.82 and a fifty-two week high of $303.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.36% and a net margin of 19.32%.The business had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.38 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.100-11.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 11.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $1.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is 59.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ITW shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Evercore decreased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $296.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $284.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Barclays cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $250.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Illinois Tool Works from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $271.92.

Illinois Tool Works 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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