Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $480.98, but opened at $452.14. Rockwell Automation shares last traded at $449.9460, with a volume of 363,126 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ROK shares. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $404.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut Rockwell Automation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $501.00 price objective on the stock. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $468.05.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 1.4%

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $465.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $425.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.22 billion, a PE ratio of 42.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.38 by $0.11. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 13.39% and a return on equity of 39.83%. The firm had revenue of $2.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-13.300 EPS. Analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.73%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 9th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP John M. Miller sold 1,054 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $426.02, for a total value of $449,025.08. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 5,615 shares in the company, valued at $2,392,102.30. The trade was a 15.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 377 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.51, for a total transaction of $173,612.27. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,437 shares in the company, valued at $2,043,282.87. This trade represents a 7.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 1,649 shares of company stock worth $722,119 in the last three months. 0.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ROK. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,206,311 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,527,249,000 after purchasing an additional 114,469 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,996,130 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,943,844,000 after buying an additional 202,705 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,924,501 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,133,397,000 after buying an additional 17,855 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,921,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,136,801,000 after buying an additional 276,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,104,985 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $818,986,000 after buying an additional 24,719 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

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.