Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Increases Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,115,280 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 432,934 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned approximately 6.30% of Rockwell Automation worth $2,033,476,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. West Oak Capital LLC raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total transaction of $248,810.28. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,219.71. This trade represents a 45.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,260.96. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,750 shares of company stock worth $1,075,923 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of ROK opened at $234.20 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $215.00 and a 52-week high of $308.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $260.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $274.86. The company has a market capitalization of $26.48 billion, a PE ratio of 29.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ROK shares. Stephens raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $283.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Rockwell Automation from $248.00 to $201.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.11.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

Rockwell Automation, Inc provides industrial automation and digital transformation solutions in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates through three segments, Intelligent Devices, Software & Control, and Lifecycle Services. Its solutions include hardware and software products and services.