Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Purchases 298 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,855 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the period. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,992,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,326,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,675,473,000 after purchasing an additional 94,601 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,434,001 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,277,127,000 after acquiring an additional 149,272 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,392,021 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,620,491,000 after acquiring an additional 99,753 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,443,251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $873,071,000 after purchasing an additional 95,925 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth about $806,291,000. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In related news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total transaction of $11,249,280.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $68,516,979.20. This represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $248.93 on Wednesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $232.77 and a one year high of $279.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $257.99 and its 200-day moving average is $260.81. The firm has a market cap of $73.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. Equities analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 51.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ITW shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Citigroup reduced 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, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $268.30.

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.