JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $280.18 Million Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,104,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 52,807 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $280,183,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ITW. Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 910 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $231,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 3,696 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $937,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $398,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its position in Illinois Tool Works by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 9,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,343,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lyell Wealth Management LP raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Lyell Wealth Management LP now owns 1,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ITW opened at $246.34 on Monday. 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 firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $260.83. The stock has a market cap of $72.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.02, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 1.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $232.77 and a fifty-two week high of $279.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, research analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors 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 dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is currently 51.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christopher A. O’herlihy sold 48,453 shares of Illinois Tool Works 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,120,802.68. This trade represents a 46.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Michael M. Larsen sold 41,472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 159,925 shares of company stock worth $42,973,845. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on ITW. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $252.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com cut Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $252.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $257.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $268.30.

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.