Swedbank AB Increases Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Swedbank AB grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 88,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 870 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $22,538,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the third quarter valued at $32,000. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

NYSE ITW opened at $259.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $232.77 and a 1-year high of $279.13. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $262.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $256.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.74 billion, a PE ratio of 22.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.11.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.55 earnings per share. Illinois Tool Works’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ITW. Citigroup cut 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $270.00 to $265.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $266.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut Illinois Tool Works from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $246.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $269.89.

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.