Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.50

Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, August 2nd, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of 1.50 per share by the industrial products company on Friday, October 11th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This is a positive change from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40.

Illinois Tool Works has raised its dividend by an average of 7.0% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 55 years. Illinois Tool Works has a payout ratio of 55.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Illinois Tool Works to earn $10.74 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $6.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 55.9%.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Performance

NYSE ITW opened at $263.90 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.35 billion, a PE ratio of 26.03, a P/E/G ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works has a 1-year low of $217.50 and a 1-year high of $271.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $247.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $248.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 19.15% and a return on equity of 99.74%. The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works will post 10.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on ITW shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Argus upgraded Illinois Tool Works to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays decreased their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $217.00 to $215.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped 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 research report on Thursday, July 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $250.22.

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.