Magnetar Financial LLC Purchases Shares of 11,464 Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 11,464 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,717,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PEAK6 Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 17.5% in the first quarter. PEAK6 Investments LLC now owns 942 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $253,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the first quarter worth about $1,147,000. Norden Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1,889.1% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 26,475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,103,000 after buying an additional 25,144 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 78.3% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 36,921 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,907,000 after buying an additional 16,216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 28.6% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 201,720 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $54,122,000 after buying an additional 44,898 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $251.00 to $246.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $283.00 to $281.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $250.22.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

NYSE:ITW opened at $256.72 on Tuesday. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $217.50 and a one year high of $271.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.30. The stock has a market cap of $76.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $246.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $248.10.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.45 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 99.74% and a net margin of 19.15%. The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. This is a positive change from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.17%.

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.