Kentucky Retirement Systems Has $8.78 Million Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Kentucky Retirement Systems boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 83.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 15,315 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $8,775,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ITW. Cresta Advisors Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 77.6% during the 1st quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 119 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Evercore reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $296.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $286.00 target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works in a report on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $310.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $280.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $279.69.

Trending Headlines about Illinois Tool Works

Here are the key news stories impacting Illinois Tool Works this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results exceeded expectations: Revenue rose 6.1% year over year to $4.30 billion, ahead of the $4.19 billion consensus, while diluted EPS increased 10.1% to $2.84 versus estimates of $2.80. Organic revenue growth accelerated to 4.5%, led by strong demand in Welding, Test & Measurement and Electronics, and Polymers & Fluids. Reuters earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Record profitability and cash flow supported the rally: Operating income reached a company-record $1.15 billion, operating margin expanded to 26.7%, and free cash flow increased 41% to $631 million. ITW returned more than $1.2 billion to shareholders in the quarter, including $750 million of share repurchases, and expects approximately $1.5 billion in repurchases for 2026. ITW Q2 results and guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its outlook: Full-year 2026 GAAP EPS guidance increased to $11.35-$11.55 from the prior outlook, while revenue growth guidance was raised to 4%-5% and organic growth guidance to 3%-4%. The company also expects free-cash-flow conversion above 100% of net income. ITW guidance announcement
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target to $350 from $310 and upgraded its stance to “overweight,” signaling confidence that stronger industrial demand and ITW’s execution can support additional gains. Benzinga analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views remain mixed: Robert W. Baird lifted its target to $297 from $278 but maintained a “neutral” rating, suggesting limited upside at recent trading levels. The Fly analyst update
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may remain alert to ITW’s debt burden and uneven segment performance. Automotive OEM and Food Equipment growth was comparatively weak, while higher raw-material costs and acquisition-related amortization continued to pressure margins and GAAP EPS.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $292.52 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $264.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $267.92. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1-year low of $238.82 and a 1-year high of $303.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The company has a market cap of $84.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.52, a PEG ratio of 5.05 and a beta of 1.00.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 101.72% and a net margin of 19.39%.The company had revenue of $4.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.58 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.350-11.550 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 11.43 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $1.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $6.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 59.80%.

Insider Activity at Illinois Tool Works

In related news, Director Jennifer F. Scanlon acquired 806 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $247.99 per share, with a total value of $199,879.94. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,652 shares in the company, valued at $409,679.48. This represents a 95.27% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Profile

Illinois Tool Works Inc (ITW) is a diversified industrial manufacturer that designs and produces a broad array of engineered products, consumables and related service solutions for industrial customers. Its offerings span engineered fastening systems, specialty components, industrial equipment, welding products, foodservice and packaging equipment, adhesives and polymer products, and test-and-measurement technologies. These products are used as critical inputs by customers across automotive, construction, electronics, foodservice, maintenance and other industrial end markets.

The company operates a decentralized business model in which independently managed businesses focus on niche product lines and close customer relationships.