Stifel Nicolaus Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) Stock

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) had its price target hoisted by Stifel Nicolaus from $262.00 to $268.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a hold rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Illinois Tool Works from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup boosted their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $266.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $281.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $267.90.

Illinois Tool Works Trading Down 0.4 %

ITW opened at $272.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Illinois Tool Works has a twelve month low of $232.77 and a twelve month high of $279.13. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $267.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $252.68.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.02 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 97.06%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.55 EPS. Analysts predict that Illinois Tool Works will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is 51.90%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 398,676 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Illinois Tool Works by 26,088.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 323,427 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $847,610,000 after purchasing an additional 322,192 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 318.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 405,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,352,000 after purchasing an additional 308,935 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. lifted its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 242.3% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 341,356 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $80,888,000 after purchasing an additional 241,618 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,292,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,645,972,000 after purchasing an additional 167,422 shares during the last quarter. 79.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.