Meyer Handelman Co. Cuts Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Meyer Handelman Co. lowered its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 149,692 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Illinois Tool Works makes up 1.3% of Meyer Handelman Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $37,956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. True Wealth Design LLC lifted 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 worth $30,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the second quarter worth about $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 28.0% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 215 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ITW. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $262.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com downgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $270.11.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ITW opened at $252.77 on Wednesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $232.77 and a 1-year high of $279.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.64 billion, a PE ratio of 21.87, 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 current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $265.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $255.30.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 97.06%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.55 EPS. Illinois Tool Works’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is currently 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.