Mechanics Bank Trust Department Buys 80 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department boosted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 1.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,814 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,454,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Affirmative Financial Network lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 16.4% during the second quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 1,969 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 175.4% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 25,420 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,359,000 after purchasing an additional 16,189 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 50.3% during the second quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 290 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Crestmont Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 13.3% during the second quarter. Crestmont Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,647 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 7.1% during the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 26,512 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,634,000 after purchasing an additional 1,753 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITW has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Credit Suisse Group raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $281.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $213.00 to $198.00 in a report on Thursday, September 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $235.00 to $240.00 in a report on Monday, July 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $237.18.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $238.31 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $245.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $238.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57, a PEG ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 1.15. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52 week low of $180.27 and a 52 week high of $264.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.59.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.14 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.30% and a return on equity of 94.14%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.37 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 9.74 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 29th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is a boost from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.31. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 28th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is presently 55.39%.

Illinois Tool Works Profile

Illinois Tool Works Inc manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment worldwide. It operates through seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products. The Automotive OEM segment offers plastic and metal components, fasteners, and assemblies for automobiles, light trucks, and other industrial uses.