Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Holdings Cut by Primecap Management Co. CA

Primecap Management Co. CA reduced its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 260,180 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,590 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $69,848,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 951.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,532,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,611,915,000 after purchasing an additional 5,006,706 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 32.0% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,510,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,912,000 after buying an additional 365,795 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,227,000 after buying an additional 1,184,648 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 4.4% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 986,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $264,929,000 after acquiring an additional 41,605 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 29,591.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 936,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $251,326,000 after acquiring an additional 933,025 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total value of $132,660.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,363,536. This trade represents a 8.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at $1,221,151.36. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $278.13 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $242.81 and a 1 year high of $312.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $270.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $267.11. The company has a market cap of $31.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.59, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.64 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. UBS Group started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.13.

About Rockwell Automation

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.