Stevens Capital Management LP Buys Shares of 1,477 Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Stevens Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,477 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $375,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 25.3% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 44,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,596,000 after buying an additional 8,922 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter worth about $723,000. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 5.4% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 248,369 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $65,095,000 after buying an additional 12,649 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 17.2% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,126 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,654,000 after buying an additional 1,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 2.0% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 88,015 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $23,066,000 after buying an additional 1,768 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 260,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $68,516,979.20. This trade represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $13,293,565.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,120,802.68. This represents a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $251.05 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $258.48 and a 200 day moving average of $260.57. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $232.77 and a 12 month high of $279.13. The firm has a market cap of $73.68 billion, a PE ratio of 21.42, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. On average, research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 51.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Barclays set a $260.00 price target on Illinois Tool Works and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com cut Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $269.10.

Illinois Tool Works Profile

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.