Cozad Asset Management Inc. Sells 246 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Cozad Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 7,568 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 246 shares during the quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ITW. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,462 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,431,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $203,000. Adero Partners LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $216,000. Claro Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 3,948 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,035,000 after acquiring an additional 545 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TrinityPoint Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 4,208 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,103,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ITW has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $312.00 to $318.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Two equities 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Illinois Tool Works has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $269.10.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $256.17 on Tuesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $232.77 and a one year high of $279.13. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $257.95 and its 200 day moving average is $260.47. The stock has a market cap of $75.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.86, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued 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 yield of 2.34%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,120,802.68. This trade represents a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. The trade was a 45.09 % 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 ninety days. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Illinois Tool Works

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.