FourThought Financial Partners LLC Takes Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,488 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $426,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 33.2% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,641 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 24.5% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 9,024 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,442,000 after purchasing an additional 1,773 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.4% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 13,764 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,694,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at approximately $322,000. Finally, MONECO Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.2% in the third quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC now owns 2,517 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $676,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

NYSE ROK opened at $288.58 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $286.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $278.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.94, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.35. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $308.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. HSBC upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.55.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 1,741 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.67, for a total transaction of $516,502.47. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 80,309 shares in the company, valued at $23,825,271.03. The trade was a 2.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total transaction of $83,967.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,184 shares in the company, valued at approximately $961,695.36. The trade was a 8.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,540 shares of company stock valued at $1,935,134. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.