PFW Advisors LLC Takes $2.42 Million Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 9,557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,423,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 29.3% during the second quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 16,489 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,907,000 after acquiring an additional 3,732 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 261.4% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 159 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 25.8% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 12,753 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,022,000 after buying an additional 2,617 shares during the last quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 18.5% during the second quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 5,728 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,357,000 after buying an additional 896 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 5.7% during the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,362 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,271,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $270.11.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ITW traded up $4.51 during trading on Monday, reaching $249.41. 1,182,633 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 929,027. The firm has a market cap of $73.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.58, a P/E/G ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.11. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $232.77 and a fifty-two week high of $279.13. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $265.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $255.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 97.06%. The company’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.55 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is currently 51.90%.

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.