Weiss Asset Management LP Invests $2.03 Million in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW – Get Rating) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 11,250 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,032,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the second quarter worth $44,000. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 5.4% in the third quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 1,267 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. IMA Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the second quarter worth $1,381,000. Lcnb Corp increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.3% in the second quarter. Lcnb Corp now owns 2,955 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $539,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Central Bank & Trust Co. increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 36.2% in the third quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 6,083 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 1,616 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITW has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $222.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 5th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $174.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 7th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group boosted their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $259.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $223.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ernest Scott Santi sold 235,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.29, for a total value of $58,039,716.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 213,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,592,274.02. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Vice Chairman Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 60,137 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.26, for a total value of $14,809,337.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 40,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,868,130.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ernest Scott Santi sold 235,656 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.29, for a total transaction of $58,039,716.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 213,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,592,274.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.78% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE ITW opened at $229.81 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $234.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $217.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The stock has a market cap of $70.11 billion, a PE ratio of 23.50, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $173.52 and a 12 month high of $253.37.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by ($0.26). The company had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 87.15% and a net margin of 19.04%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.95 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 13th. Investors of record on Friday, March 31st will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 30th. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.58%.

About Illinois Tool Works

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Illinois Tool Works, Inc engages in the manufacture of industrial products and equipment. It operates through the following segments: Automotive OEM, Test and Measurement and Electronics, Food Equipment, Polymers and Fluids, Welding, Construction Products, and Specialty Products. The Automotive OEM segment produces components and fasteners for automotive-related applications.