Illinois Tool Works Inc said it is exploring a sale or spinoff of its industrial packaging business as its looks to improve growth by shedding less profitable units.The industrial packaging unit, which accounted for 13 percent of the company's total revenue of $17.92 billion in 2012, makes steel, plastic and paper products used for bundling, shipping and protecting transported goods.Longbow Research analyst Eli Lustgarten said below-average-profitability made the packaging business "a candidate to be re-examined.""Its profitability has been in the 10-12 percent range in recent years for a company whose overall operating margin is more than 15 percent," Lustgarten said.
Illinois Tool Works Inc. (ITW) is a multinational manufacturer of a diversified range of industrial products and equipment with operations in 58 countries. Shares of ITW traded higher by 1.41% or $0.89/share to $64.14. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $49.07 and as high as $65.60. On average, 2335540 shares of ITW exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 1044134.
Source
