Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Acquires 1,951 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 11.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,297 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,951 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $4,639,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ITW. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth $203,949,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 36,632.9% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 438,591 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $111,209,000 after purchasing an additional 437,397 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $358,321,000 after purchasing an additional 398,676 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 405,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,352,000 after purchasing an additional 308,935 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,292,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,645,972,000 after purchasing an additional 167,422 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 1.7 %

Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $254.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $232.77 and a one year high of $279.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.76 billion, a PE ratio of 21.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The business’s fifty day moving average is $257.83 and its 200 day moving average is $260.27.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is 51.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $13,293,565.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. This represents a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $68,516,979.20. This trade represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ITW. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Barclays set a $260.00 target price on Illinois Tool Works and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $269.10.

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.