Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Acquired by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 99,226 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 5,847 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $25,991,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 9,666 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,024,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 9,070 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,899,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 54.7% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,859 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $599,000 after buying an additional 1,011 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 2,407 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $504,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 70.7% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 746 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $156,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Ernest Scott Santi sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.44, for a total transaction of $12,722,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 221,015 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,235,056.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Sharon Szafranski sold 801 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.42, for a total value of $205,392.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,870 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,505,185.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Ernest Scott Santi sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.44, for a total transaction of $12,722,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 221,015 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,235,056.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 189,471 shares of company stock valued at $48,712,316 in the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $301.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $277.00 to $240.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $235.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $257.00.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 0.3 %

ITW stock traded down $0.71 during trading on Thursday, hitting $248.83. 788,553 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,242,866. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1 year low of $217.06 and a 1 year high of $271.15. The firm's 50 day moving average is $260.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $250.66. The stock has a market cap of $74.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.01. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 18.36% and a return on equity of 96.60%. The company had revenue of $3.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.34 EPS. Illinois Tool Works's revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.12 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is presently 57.49%.

Illinois Tool Works Company 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.