Howard Capital Management Inc. Acquires 99 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ITW has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $262.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $269.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total transaction of $18,431,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $68,516,979.20. This represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of ITW opened at $261.24 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $256.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $258.73. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $232.77 and a 12 month high of $279.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.11.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. As a group, analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is presently 51.19%.

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.