Cushing Capital Partners LLC Takes $767,000 Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Cushing Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,007 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $767,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Pensionfund Sabic increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 37.0% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 7,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,876,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $358,321,000 after buying an additional 398,676 shares during the period. Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at $1,729,000. Czech National Bank increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 58,265 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,774,000 after buying an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,179,000. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on ITW. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays set a $260.00 price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $269.10.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $267.47 on Tuesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52 week low of $232.77 and a 52 week high of $279.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $257.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $260.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.50 billion, a PE ratio of 22.82, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $68,516,979.20. This represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.