Choate Investment Advisors Lowers Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Choate Investment Advisors trimmed its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,328 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 114 shares during the quarter. Choate Investment Advisors’ holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $2,365,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 910 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $231,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 1.0% in the third quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 4,208 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,103,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Capital Group raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% in the third quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 3,671 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $962,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 9,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,343,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $254.72 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.73, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $257.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $260.34. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52-week low of $232.77 and a 52-week high of $279.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ITW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of 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 lifted their price target 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $269.10.

Insider Activity at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were 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 directly owns 55,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,120,802.68. This represents a 46.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

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.