Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Ethic Inc.

Ethic Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 11.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,974 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,767 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $3,994,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 95.8% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,332 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,141 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 99.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 2,582 shares during the period. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 946 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $270,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 357.8% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 37,239 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,643,000 after purchasing an additional 29,105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 181.6% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,095 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $562,000 after purchasing an additional 1,351 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, 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 stock was 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 owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at $495,260.96. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 500 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.01, for a total transaction of $147,505.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,838 shares in the company, valued at $837,238.38. This represents a 14.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,250 shares of company stock worth $1,223,428. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ROK shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $201.00 to $271.00 in a research report on Thursday. Stephens upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $308.37.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE:ROK opened at $294.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $33.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $251.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $273.77. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $215.00 and a fifty-two week high of $308.70. 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 (NYSE:ROK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.36. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.50 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.99%.

Rockwell Automation 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.