Insider Selling: Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) SVP Sells 295 Shares of Stock

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) SVP Matthew Fordenwalt sold 295 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.92, for a total value of $118,861.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,529 shares in the company, valued at $1,824,824.68. The trade was a 6.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock traded down $0.02 during trading on Friday, hitting $403.87. 780,201 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,097,298. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.50. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $365.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $346.71. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $215.00 and a 1-year high of $406.44.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $3.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 10.42% and a return on equity of 32.69%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.200-12.200 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.31. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on ROK shares. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $391.00 price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $392.00 to $402.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $372.56.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.5% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,058,406 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,669,781,000 after purchasing an additional 207,448 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,793,425 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,675,446,000 after buying an additional 42,809 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,874,428 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $950,744,000 after buying an additional 48,105 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 11.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,819,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $470,091,000 after buying an additional 191,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,579,956 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $408,229,000 after buying an additional 9,920 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Rockwell Automation

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.