Cullen Investment Group LTD. Invests $388,000 in Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,483 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $388,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Illinois Tool Works by 52.7% in the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 142 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. 79.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup lifted their target price on Illinois Tool Works from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America lowered Illinois Tool Works from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $260.00 to $235.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Barclays lifted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $224.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Illinois Tool Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $240.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $238.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $254.78.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 0.1 %

ITW opened at $253.88 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $260.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $250.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.33. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a one year low of $217.06 and a one year high of $271.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 1.13.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 96.60% and a net margin of 18.36%. The firm’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.34 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.12 EPS for the current year.

Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Illinois Tool Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.49%.

Insider Transactions at Illinois Tool Works

In other news, Chairman Ernest Scott Santi sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.44, for a total transaction of $12,722,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 221,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,235,056.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Sharon Szafranski sold 801 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.42, for a total value of $205,392.42. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,870 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,505,185.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Ernest Scott Santi sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.44, for a total value of $12,722,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 221,015 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,235,056.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 189,471 shares of company stock valued at $48,712,316. Corporate insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

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.