Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Lowers Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. reduced its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 33.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,215 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,083 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,576,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pensionfund Sabic raised its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 37.0% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 7,400 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,876,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $358,321,000 after buying an additional 398,676 shares in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,729,000. Czech National Bank grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 58,265 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $14,774,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management raised 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company's stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

ITW traded down $1.14 on Thursday, hitting $238.77. 1,818,143 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,008,414. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $214.66 and a fifty-two week high of $279.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. The business's fifty day moving average is $246.16 and its 200 day moving average is $256.79.

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 for the quarter, beating 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%. Illinois Tool Works's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.51%. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is 51.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ITW shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $253.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $257.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $302.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $256.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total transaction of $18,431,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at $68,516,979.20. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,698,667.50. The trade was a 45.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. Insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

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.