Groupe la Francaise Acquires 20,115 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Groupe la Francaise grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 1,241.7% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 21,735 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,115 shares during the quarter. Groupe la Francaise’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $7,801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Front Row Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 1.3% in the first quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC now owns 8,871 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,184,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 437.1% in the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 7,246 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,600,000 after buying an additional 5,897 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 61.2% during the 1st quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 11,449 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,109,000 after buying an additional 4,345 shares in the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,706,000. Finally, Amundi grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 13.5% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 998,374 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $358,296,000 after buying an additional 118,474 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 4,024 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $451.97, for a total transaction of $1,818,727.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 134 shares in the company, valued at $60,563.98. This trade represents a 96.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $447.73, for a total transaction of $246,251.50. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,237,525.72. The trade was a 16.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 9,361 shares of company stock valued at $4,189,886. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $481.31 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $305.44 and a twelve month high of $497.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $465.17 and its 200-day moving average is $424.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.03, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.54.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.42. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.54% and a net margin of 12.36%.The company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.45 EPS. Rockwell Automation’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. Sell-side analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, June 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ROK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $404.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $470.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $500.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $469.33.

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.