Webster Bank N. A. Grows Stock Holdings in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Webster Bank N. A. boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) by 0.8% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A.’s holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $1,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 22,309,285 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,431,195,000 after purchasing an additional 997,389 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 106,553.0% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,185,211 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,582,902,000 after buying an additional 7,178,474 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,005,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,531,936,000 after buying an additional 545,904 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,611,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,363,875,000 after acquiring an additional 607,321 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 59.2% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,591,278 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,011,459,000 after acquiring an additional 1,707,780 shares during the period. 79.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.3 %

ITW stock traded down $0.70 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $237.01. The company had a trading volume of 345,031 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,069,980. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $245.99 and a 200 day moving average of $238.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a 12 month low of $180.27 and a 12 month high of $264.19. The company has a market capitalization of $71.67 billion, a PE ratio of 23.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 1.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.02. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 94.14% and a net margin of 19.30%. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.14 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.37 EPS. Illinois Tool Works’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. This is a boost from Illinois Tool Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 28th. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $235.00 to $240.00 in a report on Monday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $230.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 19th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $213.00 to $198.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 7th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Illinois Tool Works from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Illinois Tool Works has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $237.18.

Illinois Tool Works Company Profile

Illinois Tool Works Inc manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment worldwide. It operates through seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products. The Automotive OEM segment offers plastic and metal components, fasteners, and assemblies for automobiles, light trucks, and other industrial uses.