Franklin Resources Inc. Has $276.91 Million Stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,057,134 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 12,898 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.35% of Illinois Tool Works worth $276,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,507 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $395,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 2,601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $685,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,767 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $463,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.5% during the third quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,066 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $247,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PFG Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 6,655 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,743,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ITW. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $303.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $229.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $257.78.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Down 0.0 %

ITW stock traded down $0.05 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $248.73. The stock had a trading volume of 180,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,189,435. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $217.06 and a one year high of $271.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07. The company’s 50 day moving average is $255.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $254.03. The company has a market capitalization of $74.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 1.14.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.07% and a return on equity of 97.82%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.33 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.24 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is currently 55.23%.

Insider Activity at Illinois Tool Works

In related news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 37,167 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.06, for a total transaction of $9,851,485.02. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,299,844.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.