Ramsay Stattman Vela & Price Inc. Has $12.14 Million Stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Ramsay Stattman Vela & Price Inc. grew its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 0.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 75 shares during the quarter. Illinois Tool Works accounts for about 2.3% of Ramsay Stattman Vela & Price Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Ramsay Stattman Vela & Price Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $12,143,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,364,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,171,006,000 after buying an additional 51,654 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $818,408,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,949,029 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $772,469,000 after purchasing an additional 119,921 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,350,363 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $353,715,000 after purchasing an additional 26,089 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,001,113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $262,232,000 after purchasing an additional 99,175 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. bought 775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $238.82 per share, with a total value of $185,085.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 121,506 shares in the company, valued at $29,018,062.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ITW. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Argus upgraded Illinois Tool Works to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $250.22.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 1.1 %

Illinois Tool Works stock traded up $2.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $253.18. The stock had a trading volume of 822,593 shares, compared to its average volume of 765,347. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.55 billion, a PE ratio of 24.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $217.50 and a fifty-two week high of $271.15. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $242.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $249.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.30.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.15% and a return on equity of 99.74%. Illinois Tool Works’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.41 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. This is an increase from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 59.17%.

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.