Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $400.31, but opened at $454.50. Rockwell Automation shares last traded at $443.1180, with a volume of 342,366 shares traded.

The industrial products company reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.92% and a net margin of 11.56%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.45 EPS. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ROK. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $410.00 to $360.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Barclays reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $450.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $458.00 to $448.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 target price (down from $490.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. One equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $406.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,985 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.37, for a total transaction of $812,599.45. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 4,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,652,217.32. This represents a 32.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 1,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.50, for a total value of $484,375.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 1,734 shares in the company, valued at $671,925. The trade was a 41.89% decrease in their position. 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. Insiders have sold 51,375 shares of company stock worth $20,828,717 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Rockwell Automation

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 97.5% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 79 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, TD Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 11.4%

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $383.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $389.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $50.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.56.

Rockwell Automation Company 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.