Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC Sells 28,769 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 36.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 50,366 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 28,769 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $12,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc grew its position in Illinois Tool Works by 336.0% during the 4th quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc now owns 109 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.25, for a total value of $11,249,280.00. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $13,293,565.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. The trade was a 46.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

Shares of ITW opened at $244.73 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.36. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $241.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $255.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.12. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52 week low of $214.66 and a 52 week high of $279.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.83 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.44 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ITW shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $239.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $252.00 to $249.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.42.

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.