Strategic Advisors LLC Has $329,000 Stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,296 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Strategic Advisors LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $329,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $358,321,000 after acquiring an additional 398,676 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted 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 worth $847,610,000 after acquiring an additional 322,192 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 405,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,352,000 after acquiring an additional 308,935 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,292,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,645,972,000 after acquiring an additional 167,422 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 787.3% during the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 186,643 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $48,945,000 after acquiring an additional 165,607 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ITW opened at $257.98 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $258.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $257.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 1.11. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1 year low of $232.77 and a 1 year high of $279.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. As a group, research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is 51.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ITW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $246.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given 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 target price of $271.00.

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.