Simon Quick Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Simon Quick Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $570,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 7,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,876,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 41.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,370,254 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $358,321,000 after acquiring an additional 398,676 shares during the period. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter worth about $1,729,000. Czech National Bank increased its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 58,265 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,774,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,179,000. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the company’s stock.

Illinois Tool Works Price Performance

ITW stock opened at $259.02 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $263.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $256.07. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $232.77 and a one year high of $279.13. The company has a market capitalization of $76.49 billion, a PE ratio of 22.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.11.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 97.06%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ITW has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $262.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com raised Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Illinois Tool Works from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $279.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $270.11.

About Illinois Tool Works

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.