Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Sold by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. trimmed its position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 15.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 144,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 25,611 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $36,539,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other 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 company’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 transaction of $18,431,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 260,224 shares in the company, valued at $68,516,979.20. This represents a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total transaction of $11,249,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845. Insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on ITW shares. Barclays set a $260.00 target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com cut Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. 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 report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $269.10.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ITW opened at $254.93 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $260.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.82 billion, a PE ratio of 21.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $232.77 and a fifty-two week high of $279.13. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 95.39%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.19%.

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.