Financial Advocates Investment Management Increases Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Financial Advocates Investment Management increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,062,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 261.4% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 159 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2,162.5% in the 2nd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 181 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on ITW shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $251.00 to $246.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $256.40.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE ITW opened at $263.08 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $255.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $247.43. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $225.88 and a one year high of $271.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market cap of $78.11 billion, a PE ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 1.10.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.55 EPS. Analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.16 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 Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 51.90%.

Illinois Tool Works Company 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.