Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 43,101 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 874,868 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 43,101 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $215,480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,065 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Revisor Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Revisor Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,841 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $734,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA now owns 3,591 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $884,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV now owns 1,558 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $384,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Illinois Tool Works

In other news, Director Jennifer F. Scanlon purchased 806 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $247.99 per share, for a total transaction of $199,879.94. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 1,652 shares in the company, valued at $409,679.48. This represents a 95.27% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 1.7%

NYSE:ITW opened at $256.57 on Wednesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $238.82 and a one year high of $303.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $262.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.82, a PEG ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 1.01.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.32% and a return on equity of 97.36%. The business had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.38 earnings per share. Illinois Tool Works’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.100-11.500 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 11.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.61 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ITW has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $250.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $254.00 price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $284.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $303.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $271.92.

About Illinois Tool Works

Illinois Tool Works Inc (ITW) is a diversified industrial manufacturer that designs and produces a broad array of engineered products, consumables and related service solutions for industrial customers. Its offerings span engineered fastening systems, specialty components, industrial equipment, welding products, foodservice and packaging equipment, adhesives and polymer products, and test-and-measurement technologies. These products are used as critical inputs by customers across automotive, construction, electronics, foodservice, maintenance and other industrial end markets.

The company operates a decentralized business model in which independently managed businesses focus on niche product lines and close customer relationships.