Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Bought by Integrated Investment Consultants LLC

Integrated Investment Consultants LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 7.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,398 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $971,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 50.9% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,213 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 51.6% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 2,752 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $787,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the period. Boston Common Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC now owns 18,232 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,211,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares in the last quarter. Steph & Co. acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $123,000. Finally, ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $237,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE ROK opened at $287.06 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $287.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $274.10. The stock has a market cap of $32.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.67, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.36. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $307.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.64 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.37 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on ROK. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays dropped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. HSBC raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $304.16.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total transaction of $7,973,421.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. This trade represents a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total value of $83,967.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,184 shares in the company, valued at $961,695.36. This trade represents a 8.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,436 shares of company stock valued at $10,832,549. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.