Illinois Tool Works Inc. filed a Form 8-K with the SEC on October 27, 2026, announcing its third quarter 2026 results of operations via a press release furnished as Exhibit 99.1.

Key Highlights

  • Earnings announcement: Illinois Tool Works reported its 2026 third quarter results of operations on October 27, 2026.
  • Non-GAAP measure - free cash flow: The company uses free cash flow, defined as net cash provided by operating activities less additions to plant and equipment, to measure cash available for dividends, share repurchases, acquisitions, and debt repayment.
  • Non-GAAP measure - After-tax ROIC: The company defines After-tax ROIC as operating income after taxes divided by average invested capital, annualized when presented in interim periods.
  • Discrete tax benefit exclusions: For comparability, the company excluded a discrete tax benefit of $34 million in the first quarter of 2026 from net income and the effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2026.
  • Prior-period exclusions: The company also excluded a net discrete tax benefit of $27 million in the third quarter of 2025 and a discrete tax benefit of $21 million in the first quarter of 2025 from comparable period calculations.
  • Signed by CFO: The filing was signed by Michael M. Larsen, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

Illinois Tool Works Q3 2026 Operating Results and Non-GAAP Disclosures

Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW), headquartered at 155 Harlem Avenue, Glenview, Illinois, filed a current report under Item 2.02 (Results of Operations and Financial Condition) disclosing its third quarter 2026 financial results. According to the filing, the detailed results are contained in a press release furnished as Exhibit 99.1, which also includes reconciliations of the non-GAAP measures discussed in the 8-K body.

The filing describes two non-GAAP financial measures the company uses alongside GAAP results. First, free cash flow, which the company disclosed "represents net cash provided by operating activities less additions to plant and equipment." The company stated it uses this measure to assess cash available for dividends, share repurchases, acquisitions, and debt repayment, and cautioned that it "may not be consistent with similarly titled measures used by other companies." Second, After-tax ROIC, which the filing describes as "operating income after taxes divided by average invested capital." The most comparable GAAP measure to operating income after taxes, according to the filing, is net income.

For comparability purposes, the company disclosed several discrete tax benefit exclusions across periods. These include a $34 million benefit in the first quarter of 2026, a $27 million net benefit in the third quarter of 2025, and a $21 million benefit in the first quarter of 2025. Each exclusion was applied to the respective period's net income and effective tax rate in the After-tax ROIC calculation. Total invested capital, the filing noted, "represents the net assets of the Company, other than cash and equivalents and outstanding debt."

What Was Disclosed

Illinois Tool Works filed an 8-K on October 27, 2026, covering its Q3 2026 operating results and explaining its use of two non-GAAP measures, free cash flow and After-tax ROIC, with reconciliations included in the furnished press release Exhibit 99.1.