Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) Shares Acquired by MetLife Investment Management LLC

MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 76,387 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 620 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $19,369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,326,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,675,473,000 after purchasing an additional 94,601 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,392,021 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,620,491,000 after purchasing an additional 99,753 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,132,493 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,047,837,000 after buying an additional 71,934 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,443,251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $873,071,000 after buying an additional 95,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $806,291,000. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Illinois Tool Works news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were 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 represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,698,667.50. This represents a 45.09 % decrease in their position. 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. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of ITW stock opened at $230.68 on Friday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $214.66 and a 12 month high of $279.13. The company has a market cap of $67.67 billion, a PE ratio of 19.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $249.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $257.88.

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

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ITW has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $259.00 to $227.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $269.00 to $234.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of 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. StockNews.com downgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $260.09.

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.