Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK Shares Purchased by Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 100.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,623 shares during the period. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $9,010,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,544,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,446 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 1.1% during the third quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 2,598 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $908,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eukles Asset Management boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Eukles Asset Management now owns 9,596 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,734,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE ROK opened at $440.24 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $424.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $406.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $48.99 billion, a PE ratio of 45.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.57. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $305.44 and a twelve month high of $468.11.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.36% and a return on equity of 37.54%. Rockwell Automation’s revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.45 EPS. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.38%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 9th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to buy up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on ROK shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $360.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $435.00 to $410.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “market perform” rating and a $501.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $466.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $451.75.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John M. Miller sold 1,054 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $426.02, for a total value of $449,025.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 5,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,392,102.30. The trade was a 15.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Christopher Nardecchia sold 2,538 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $446.43, for a total value of $1,133,039.34. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 14,232 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,353,591.76. The trade was a 15.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 12,308 shares of company stock worth $5,339,812 in the last three months. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company’s product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.