Franklin Resources Inc. Has $276.91 Million Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW - Free Report) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,057,134 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 12,898 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.35% of Illinois Tool Works worth $276,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 127.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,835 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $743,000 after purchasing an additional 1,586 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 122.7% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 629,636 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $164,927,000 after purchasing an additional 346,919 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,457 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,049,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. Sachetta LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter worth about $227,000. Finally, Balentine LLC increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 12.9% during the fourth quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 6,058 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,587,000 after acquiring an additional 691 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 37,167 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.06, for a total value of $9,851,485.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,404 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,299,844.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ITW traded down $0.09 on Wednesday, hitting $248.70. 974,972 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,197,664. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $255.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $253.99. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $217.06 and a 1-year high of $271.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 1.14.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.07% and a return on equity of 97.82%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.33 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.24 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. Illinois Tool Works's payout ratio is 55.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ITW. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $303.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Citigroup raised 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 report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average 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.