Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System cut its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 488,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 32,796 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $123,850,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

NYSE:ITW opened at $246.34 on Monday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52 week low of $232.77 and a 52 week high of $279.13. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $258.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $260.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The company has a market cap of $72.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 51.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $268.30.

Insider Activity at Illinois Tool Works

In other news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total transaction 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 approximately $68,516,979.20. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total transaction of $13,293,565.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. The trade was a 46.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845 over the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Company 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.