Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 12,559 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 6.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 175,835 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 12,559 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.06% of Illinois Tool Works worth $43,936,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Aspire Private Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $16,798,050,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Northwest Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Miller Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 52.7% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 142 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 79.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ITW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 3rd. Credit Suisse Group lifted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $281.00 to $292.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $265.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 16th. Barclays cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $213.00 to $198.00 in a report on Thursday, September 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $235.00 in a report on Monday, October 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.25.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of ITW stock opened at $239.92 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $231.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $237.75. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $214.66 and a 1-year high of $264.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $72.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.14.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 24th. The industrial products company reported $2.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.68% and a net margin of 19.55%. The company had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 9.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 29th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 28th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.32%.

Illinois Tool Works Company 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.