Essential Planning LLC. Takes $7.28 Million Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Essential Planning LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 27,444 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,279,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ITW. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the fourth quarter worth $203,949,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 36,632.9% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 438,591 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $111,209,000 after purchasing an additional 437,397 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $358,321,000 after purchasing an additional 398,676 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 405,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,352,000 after purchasing an additional 308,935 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,292,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,645,972,000 after purchasing an additional 167,422 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on ITW. Barclays set a $260.00 target price on Illinois Tool Works and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. StockNews.com lowered Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $259.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $269.10.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ernest Scott Santi sold 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total value of $18,431,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 260,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $68,516,979.20. This represents a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $13,698,667.50. The trade was a 45.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 159,925 shares of company stock valued at $42,973,845 over the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

ITW opened at $255.05 on Wednesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52-week low of $232.77 and a 52-week high of $279.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.86 billion, a PE ratio of 21.76, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. 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 business’s 50-day simple moving average is $257.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $260.36.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.04. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 95.39% and a net margin of 21.94%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.19%.

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.