Ethic Inc. Acquires 4,131 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Ethic Inc. boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 49,440 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,131 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $12,536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth $1,729,000. Czech National Bank lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 58,265 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $14,774,000 after buying an additional 3,227 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 31.6% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 15,682 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,976,000 after buying an additional 3,765 shares during the last quarter. Clarity Financial LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at $315,000. Finally, Flywheel Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at $263,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total transaction of $11,249,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher A. O'herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 55,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. This trade represents a 46.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845 over the last three months. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ITW traded down $0.54 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $249.77. The stock had a trading volume of 1,184,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,018,828. The business's fifty day moving average is $243.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $255.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $73.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.31, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $214.66 and a twelve month high of $279.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.44 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is presently 52.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ITW shares. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $239.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $257.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $253.67.

Illinois Tool Works 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.