Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Grows Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. $ITW

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,242 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 556 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $3,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the first quarter valued at $26,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 90.9% in the second quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 105 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the first quarter valued at $29,000. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the first quarter valued at $30,000. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 1.8%

Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $248.19 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $261.18 and its 200-day moving average is $251.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.59. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 1 year low of $214.66 and a 1 year high of $279.13. The company has a market cap of $72.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.75, a PEG ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 1.10.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.02. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.31% and a return on equity of 90.89%. The company had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.54 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Illinois Tool Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.350-10.550 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $1.61 dividend. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This is an increase from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 56.44%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Randall J. Scheuneman sold 6,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.08, for a total value of $1,803,074.16. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,734,035.12. This trade represents a 39.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ITW. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $254.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $262.83.

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.