Dearborn Partners LLC Has $284,000 Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Dearborn Partners LLC trimmed its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 13.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 975 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 152 shares during the quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $284,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 955,574 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $278,387,000 after buying an additional 54,948 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 678,442 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $210,644,000 after purchasing an additional 19,656 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 645,485 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $200,410,000 after acquiring an additional 35,070 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 579,022 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $179,775,000 after acquiring an additional 23,084 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 27.0% during the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 420,099 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $129,247,000 after acquiring an additional 89,207 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 528 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.78, for a total value of $133,995.84. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $943,554.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 528 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.78, for a total value of $133,995.84. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 3,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $943,554.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 248 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.37, for a total transaction of $63,579.76. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,088,547.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,199 shares of company stock worth $572,750 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROK. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Monday, July 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $312.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $290.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $310.00 to $304.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $300.71.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 3.7 %

NYSE:ROK traded down $10.69 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $277.17. The stock had a trading volume of 451,939 shares, compared to its average volume of 982,838. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $265.72 and a 200 day moving average of $278.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $31.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.98, a PEG ratio of 4.87 and a beta of 1.37. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $249.00 and a one year high of $345.51.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.05 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.83% and a net margin of 13.19%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 10.16 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.88%.

Rockwell Automation 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.