LRI Investments LLC Takes Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 737 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $184,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Security National Bank purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $305.00 to $283.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $259.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $244.00 to $230.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $253.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of ITW stock traded up $3.66 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $247.49. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 882,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,069,821. The business has a fifty day moving average of $240.92 and a 200-day moving average of $251.31. The stock has a market cap of $73.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $217.50 and a twelve month high of $271.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.33 earnings per share. Illinois Tool Works’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.14 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.23%.

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.