Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Decreases Stock Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 149,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,765 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $38,009,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,060.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ITW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on 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 increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on 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, StockNews.com cut shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $268.30.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 2.2 %

Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $246.34 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12-month low of $232.77 and a 12-month high of $279.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.02, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $258.40 and a 200 day moving average of $260.64.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) 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, research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Illinois Tool Works news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,698,667.50. This trade represents a 45.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,113 shares in the company, valued at $15,120,802.68. This trade represents a 46.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. 1.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.