Capital Investment Advisors LLC Has $3.23 Million Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,737 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 532 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $3,230,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised 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 buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Barclays dropped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $270.11.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:ITW opened at $249.41 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $265.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $255.18. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52 week low of $232.77 and a 52 week high of $279.13. The company has a market capitalization of $73.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.58, a P/E/G ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.11. 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 (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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. The company’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is currently 51.90%.

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.