Fox Run Management L.L.C. Buys Shares of 1,613 Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $409,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on ITW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. 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 report on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $269.10.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total transaction of $13,293,565.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. This represents a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $254.93 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company has a market capitalization of $74.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $258.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $260.74. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1 year low of $232.77 and a 1 year high of $279.13.

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

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

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 given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.19%.

Illinois Tool Works 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.