Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Sells 1,465 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP decreased its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 11.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,465 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $2,953,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ITW. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 26,088.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 323,427 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $847,610,000 after purchasing an additional 322,192 shares in the last quarter. AXA S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 242.3% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 341,356 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $80,888,000 after buying an additional 241,618 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD raised its stake in shares of 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. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 9.6% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,527,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $361,998,000 after acquiring an additional 133,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 75.1% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 258,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,136,000 after acquiring an additional 110,673 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

NYSE ITW opened at $276.37 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.91, a PEG ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $262.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $250.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.36. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $232.77 and a fifty-two week high of $277.94.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. Illinois Tool Works’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.55 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ITW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Argus upgraded Illinois Tool Works to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays boosted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $257.30.

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.