KCM Investment Advisors LLC Sells 865 Shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

KCM Investment Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,711 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 865 shares during the quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $2,301,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,364,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,171,006,000 after purchasing an additional 51,654 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth about $818,408,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,951,948 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $773,234,000 after acquiring an additional 122,840 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,350,363 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $353,715,000 after acquiring an additional 26,089 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,001,113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $262,232,000 after purchasing an additional 99,175 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

Shares of Illinois Tool Works stock opened at $253.18 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $75.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $242.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $249.13. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $217.50 and a twelve month high of $271.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.30.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced 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. The business had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 99.74% and a net margin of 19.15%. Illinois Tool Works’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.41 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This is a positive change from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. Illinois Tool Works’s payout ratio is 59.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Illinois Tool Works news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. bought 775 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $238.82 per share, with a total value of $185,085.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 121,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,018,062.92. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on ITW. Argus raised shares of Illinois Tool Works to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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 lowered their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $250.22.

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.