Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK Stake Boosted by Mandatum Life Insurance Co Ltd

Mandatum Life Insurance Co Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 26.9% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 22,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares during the period. Rockwell Automation comprises 1.8% of Mandatum Life Insurance Co Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Mandatum Life Insurance Co Ltd’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $7,967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ROK. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. now owns 1,358 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $487,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 4.6% in the first quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 574 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,544,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,412 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $549,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its holdings in 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 period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $470.11 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $460.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $418.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $52.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.87, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.54. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $305.44 and a 52 week high of $497.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.42. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.36% and a return on equity of 37.54%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.45 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS. Research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 57.38%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, June 9th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $445.00 to $490.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $470.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $448.00 to $487.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $404.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Mizuho set a $445.00 price target on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $469.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 377 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.51, for a total value of $173,612.27. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 4,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,043,282.87. The trade was a 7.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 550 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.73, for a total value of $246,251.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 2,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,237,525.72. This trade represents a 16.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 9,361 shares of company stock valued at $4,189,886. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Profile

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.