Guardian Capital LP Has $6.19 Million Stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Guardian Capital LP raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,398 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Guardian Capital LP’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $6,186,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ITW. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,326,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,675,473,000 after acquiring an additional 94,601 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,667,653 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,465,570,000 after purchasing an additional 508,188 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,392,021 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,620,491,000 after purchasing an additional 99,753 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,132,493 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,047,837,000 after purchasing an additional 71,934 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,443,251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $873,071,000 after purchasing an additional 95,925 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on ITW. Barclays dropped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $252.00 to $240.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $253.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $259.00 to $227.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $260.09.

Insider Activity at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at $13,698,667.50. The trade was a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $15,120,802.68. The trade was a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $242.33 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $246.64 and a 200-day moving average of $256.91. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1 year low of $214.66 and a 1 year high of $279.13. The company has a market capitalization of $71.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. On average, equities research analysts predict 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 was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date was 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.