Fractal Investments LLC Invests $210,000 in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Fractal Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $210,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the second quarter worth about $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Illinois Tool Works by 261.4% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 159 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ITW. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $256.40.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 1.0 %

ITW stock opened at $266.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52 week low of $227.66 and a 52 week high of $271.15. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $256.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $247.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 97.06% and a net margin of 21.66%. The business’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 51.90%.

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.