Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Macquarie Group Ltd.

Macquarie Group Ltd. lessened its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 2.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 263 shares during the period. Macquarie Group Ltd.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $3,309,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,472,877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,212,750,000 after acquiring an additional 106,641 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,741,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $706,004,000 after acquiring an additional 457,383 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 13.8% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,638,992 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $774,411,000 after acquiring an additional 320,524 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.2% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,375,698 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $695,560,000 after acquiring an additional 51,561 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,157,129 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $602,775,000 after acquiring an additional 134,660 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.84% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.00, for a total value of $48,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $305,500. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.62, for a total transaction of $148,810.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,876 shares in the company, valued at $855,955.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.00, for a total transaction of $48,750.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 940 shares in the company, valued at $305,500. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,327 shares of company stock valued at $401,459. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $288.85 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $312.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $298.47. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $209.27 and a one year high of $348.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.56, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.45.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $3.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.19 by ($0.18). Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 16.51% and a return on equity of 40.33%. The business had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.66 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 11.94 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $375.00 to $335.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Wolfe Research raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 11th. Barclays cut shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $300.00 to $287.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $317.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 29th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.00.

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.