Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Bought by Forum Financial Management LP

Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,146 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the quarter. Forum Financial Management LP’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $508,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ITW. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $818,408,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 122.7% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 629,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $164,927,000 after acquiring an additional 346,919 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 1st quarter worth $65,747,000. Pinebridge Investments L.P. grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 380.7% during the 4th quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 261,590 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $68,521,000 after acquiring an additional 207,167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guinness Asset Management LTD grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 30.7% during the 2nd quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 767,741 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $181,926,000 after acquiring an additional 180,458 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. purchased 775 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $238.82 per share, for a total transaction of $185,085.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 121,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,018,062.92. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ITW. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $217.00 to $215.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $250.22.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ITW opened at $253.18 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $75.55 billion, a PE ratio of 24.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $242.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $249.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $217.50 and a fifty-two week high of $271.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.45 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.15% and a return on equity of 99.74%. Illinois Tool Works’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. This is an increase from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 59.17%.

Illinois Tool Works Company 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.