DnB Asset Management AS Has $13.78 Million Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

DnB Asset Management AS grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 56.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 17,336 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $13,775,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $300,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 12.6% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 79,152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,250,000 after purchasing an additional 8,864 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,780,000. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 2,104 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $565,000 after buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 9,677 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,598,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.42.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total value of $351,364.33. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,041,819.50. The trade was a 25.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total value of $245,874.40. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $329,114.56. This represents a 42.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,352 shares of company stock worth $1,246,298 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 3.7 %

ROK opened at $258.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $242.81 and a fifty-two week high of $308.70. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $278.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $278.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.16, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. As a group, research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.