Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) Stock Price

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) had its price objective reduced by Wells Fargo & Company from $260.00 to $250.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an underweight rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price 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. Barclays raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $230.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Robert W. Baird upped 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $262.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered Illinois Tool Works from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $246.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $268.00.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

ITW stock opened at $247.66 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $73.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.42, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $266.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $254.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.36. Illinois Tool Works has a 52-week low of $232.77 and a 52-week high of $279.13.

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

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.90%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Illinois Tool Works

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of ITW. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the second quarter worth $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased 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 purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.