Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW Position Lessened by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP lowered its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 5.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 196,897 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 10,703 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $51,343,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 4.2% in the second quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 988 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $244,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.7% during the third quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 2,574 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $671,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.0% during the third quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 4,171 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,087,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 6,605 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,733,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, BLB&B Advisors LLC lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 1,605 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $419,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of ITW stock opened at $271.60 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $274.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $260.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.89, a P/E/G ratio of 14.63 and a beta of 1.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $214.66 and a fifty-two week high of $303.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.69 by $0.03. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.11% and a return on equity of 95.16%. The firm had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.54 earnings per share. Illinois Tool Works’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.000-11.400 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $1.61 dividend. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is presently 61.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $220.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $278.00 target price on Illinois Tool Works in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $275.69.

Insider Activity at Illinois Tool Works

In related news, EVP Axel Beck sold 4,223 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.22, for a total transaction of $1,225,599.06. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,789 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,680,083.58. This represents a 42.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 167,345 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.93, for a total transaction of $48,685,680.85. Following the sale, the director owned 258,766 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $75,282,792.38. The trade was a 39.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Company Profile

Illinois Tool Works Inc (ITW) is a diversified industrial manufacturer that designs and produces a broad array of engineered products, consumables and related service solutions for industrial customers. Its offerings span engineered fastening systems, specialty components, industrial equipment, welding products, foodservice and packaging equipment, adhesives and polymer products, and test-and-measurement technologies. These products are used as critical inputs by customers across automotive, construction, electronics, foodservice, maintenance and other industrial end markets.

The company operates a decentralized business model in which independently managed businesses focus on niche product lines and close customer relationships.