Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Holdings Cut by KLCM Advisors Inc.

KLCM Advisors Inc. lowered its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,974 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 209 shares during the period. KLCM Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,041,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 5.0% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,205,082 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,035,292,000 after acquiring an additional 1,238,239 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,829,189 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,954,691,000 after purchasing an additional 244,145 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 106,553.0% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,185,211 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,582,902,000 after purchasing an additional 7,178,474 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,899,522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,578,299,000 after purchasing an additional 97,568 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 12.1% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,611,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,363,875,000 after purchasing an additional 607,321 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on ITW shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $238.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $260.00 to $235.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $224.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $277.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Four 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $254.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,505,185.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 transaction of $9,851,485.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,299,844.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Sharon Szafranski sold 801 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.42, for a total transaction of $205,392.42. Following the sale, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 189,471 shares of company stock valued at $48,712,316. Company insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

NYSE:ITW traded down $2.62 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $251.21. 1,032,092 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 974,717. The company has a market capitalization of $75.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 1.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $217.06 and a 12 month high of $271.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.10. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $260.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $250.67.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 18.36% and a return on equity of 96.60%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is 57.49%.

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.