NorthRock Partners LLC Raises Stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

NorthRock Partners LLC increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 44.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,252 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,766 shares during the quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $3,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of 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 worth $14,774,000 after acquiring an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,737 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,230,000 after buying an additional 532 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 23.6% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 3,308 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $810,000 after buying an additional 631 shares during the period. Cooper Financial Group lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 1,055 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, First Financial Corp IN lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 2,880.0% in the fourth quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 298 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America lowered Illinois Tool Works from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $220.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Illinois Tool Works from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $257.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $302.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup lowered their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $253.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $253.67.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

NYSE:ITW traded up $3.36 during trading on Friday, reaching $251.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,179,486 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,022,065. The firm has a market cap of $73.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. 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 50 day moving average of $241.76 and a 200-day moving average of $255.64. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $214.66 and a 12 month high of $279.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.44 EPS. Research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

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 given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio is presently 52.77%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This represents a 45.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at $68,516,979.20. This trade represents a 21.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845 in the last 90 days. 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.