J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Grows Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 242,090 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,181 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG owned 0.08% of Illinois Tool Works worth $61,384,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ITW. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $806,291,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter valued at $203,949,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 263.9% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 903,710 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $229,269,000 after buying an additional 655,341 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 36,632.9% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 438,591 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $111,209,000 after acquiring an additional 437,397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $358,321,000 after acquiring an additional 398,676 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Christopher A. O'herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $13,293,565.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,120,802.68. This represents a 46.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were 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 directly owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 90 days, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on 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. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $259.00 to $227.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup dropped their price objective 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, UBS Group reduced their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $260.09.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

NYSE ITW traded down $2.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $239.42. The stock had a trading volume of 1,285,772 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,000,535. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $214.66 and a twelve month high of $279.13. 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 firm's 50 day moving average is $247.58 and its 200 day moving average is $257.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.43, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. Equities research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given 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 dividend yield of 2.51%. Illinois Tool Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.19%.

About Illinois Tool Works

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.