Diversified Trust Co Increases Stock Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,534 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $389,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% in 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. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

ITW opened at $245.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $72.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.19, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $265.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $254.99. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $232.77 and a 1-year high of $279.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced 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. 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given 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 was Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is currently 51.90%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on ITW. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI cut shares of Illinois Tool Works from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $246.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $271.67.

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.