Lynch & Associates IN Buys 117 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Lynch & Associates IN lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,138 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Lynch & Associates IN’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $4,092,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 261.4% during the second 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on ITW. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $262.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $246.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $268.00.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ITW traded down $2.60 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $245.01. 1,152,589 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 886,400. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.35 billion, a PE ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.11. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $266.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $254.85. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $232.77 and a 12 month high of $279.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 97.06%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.90%.

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.