Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 78,533 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 64.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 42,444 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 78,533 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC's holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $11,118,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ITW. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,507 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 2,601 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $685,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.5% in the third quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,066 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $247,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. PFG Advisors raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 6,655 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,743,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,635 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $952,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

ITW stock traded up $1.88 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $243.92. The stock had a trading volume of 929,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,218,462. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52-week low of $217.06 and a 52-week high of $271.15. The company has a market cap of $72.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $258.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $252.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.07% and a return on equity of 97.82%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.33 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is 55.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Sharon Szafranski sold 801 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.42, for a total value of $205,392.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,870 shares in the company, valued at $1,505,185.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Chairman Ernest Scott Santi sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.44, for a total value of $12,722,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 221,015 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,235,056.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sharon Szafranski sold 801 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.42, for a total transaction of $205,392.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,870 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,505,185.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 139,471 shares of company stock valued at $35,970,816. Insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ITW has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America lowered Illinois Tool Works from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their price target for the company from $260.00 to $235.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Illinois Tool Works from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $257.78.

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.