Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System reduced its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 488,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 32,796 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.17% of Illinois Tool Works worth $123,850,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,326,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,675,473,000 after purchasing an additional 94,601 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,434,001 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,277,127,000 after buying an additional 149,272 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% during 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 buying an additional 167,422 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,443,251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $873,071,000 after buying an additional 95,925 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at $806,291,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,698,667.50. The trade was a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the business’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 value of $18,431,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 260,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $68,516,979.20. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 2.2 %

ITW stock opened at $246.34 on Monday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52-week low of $232.77 and a 52-week high of $279.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market cap of $72.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.02, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $260.83.

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

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

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 2.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is presently 51.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $252.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $268.30.

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.