Founded in 1912, Illinois Tool Works has become a diversified industrial manufacturer through acquisitions and innovations that follow customer needs. ITW operates through seven business segments, with no segment representing more than one fifth of revenue. ITW’s automotive OEM segment sells vehicle components; its food equipment segment sells commercial kitchen appliances; its test & measurement and electronics segment sells inspection and analysis equipment; its welding segment sells welding equipment and consumables; its polymers & fluids segment sells industrial and consumer adhesives, solvents, and coatings; its construction products segment sells building fasteners and tools; and its specialty products segment sells medical, packaging, HVAC, and airport ground equipment.

Illinois Tool Works is a diversified global manufacturer that produces specialized industrial equipment, consumables, and related services. The firm operates 84 global divisions through seven distinct operating segments: automotive OEM, construction products, food equipment, specialty products, test/measurement and electronics, polymers and fluids, and welding. About half of its revenue comes from its operations in North America, with the remainder originating from international markets. Europe, the Middle East, and Africa is the next largest contributor at about 25% of revenue. ITW takes a bottom-up and decentralized approach to portfolio management, with the exception that each segment must apply its 80/20 operating process modeled on the Pareto principle.

Illinois Tool Works is a global manufacturer of engineered industrial products and equipment. The company's operations are divided into seven segments: Test & Measurement and Electronics, Automotive OEM, Polymers & Fluids, Food Equipment, Welding, Construction Products, and Specialty Products. The shares are a component of the S&P 500. The company has 45,000 employees.

The stock market tried its best to rally on July 29, but with major EPS reports, a Fed decision, and an employment report looming, higher prices attracted sellers and the major indices finished flat. The market will either continue lower in the near term or the pullback will end and new highs are just around the corner. We would bet on the former, as there is no indication from the recent price action of the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Nasdaq 100 that the selling is over. While the tech-heavy indices, industries, and mega caps have worked off overbought momentum conditions on a daily and weekly basis, we have not yet cycled into oversold territory on a daily basis. Do we have to? Absolutely not -- but it probably would be healthy. The last time Technology indices/stocks were oversold on a daily basis was on April 19 -- but just barely, with the 14-day relative strength index reaching 30. The last time tech was oversold on a weekly basis was in mid-2022 -- and prior to that, during the pandemic. Long-term relative strength leadership rarely cycles into oversold territory on a weekly or monthly basis except during mega meltdowns and crashes. So there is a smell of panic in Technology land as the 'can't miss' semiconductor stocks are stinking it up. But at least the money fleeing those stocks is being moved into other areas of the market. The NYSE, Dow Jones Industrials, the S&P 500 equal weight, the S&P MidCap 400, the Russell 2000, and the S&P Small Cap 600 continue to catch a bid -- with most remaining near all-time highs. As of this writing, the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX $220.58) has cratered almost 17% over the 14 sessions, its largest decline in that time period since June 2022 (which was during a tough bear market for Information Technology). There is a cluster of support near $200, which includes the last low in April, trendline support off the lows since October 2022, and a 38.2% retracement of the bull market. Distribution days on the Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) and the SOXX continue to add up as we count seven on both ETFs over the past 14 days.