Westpac Banking Corp Boosts Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Westpac Banking Corp boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 22,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $5,696,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 17.5% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 8,043 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,108,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 21.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,099 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 264.1% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 6,073 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,591,000 after purchasing an additional 4,405 shares during the period. Investment Management Corp of Ontario lifted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 29.8% during the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 13,927 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 24.4% during the third quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,434 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,997,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This represents a 45.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of ITW stock opened at $252.93 on Thursday. 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 $74.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12-month low of $232.77 and a 12-month high of $279.13. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $257.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $260.75.

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 return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. Equities research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on ITW. Barclays decreased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $252.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. 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. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target 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. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $268.30.

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.