Quest Partners LLC Purchases 880 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 8.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 11,171 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 880 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $2,928,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the second quarter worth $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE ITW opened at $270.62 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.41, a PEG ratio of 4.19 and a beta of 1.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $260.09 and its 200 day moving average is $248.98. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 52 week low of $232.77 and a 52 week high of $277.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 97.06%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is presently 51.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ITW has been the topic of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $246.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Argus upgraded Illinois Tool Works to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $257.30.

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.