Insider Selling: Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) VP Sells 876 Shares of Stock

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total transaction of $248,810.28. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares in the company, valued at $300,219.71. The trade was a 45.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Isaac Woods also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, January 10th, Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of Rockwell Automation stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total transaction of $245,874.40.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $278.20 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $285.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $278.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $31.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.35. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $242.81 and a 1 year high of $308.70.

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

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.26%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 33.2% during the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 33,905 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,102,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 783,626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $208,790,000 after buying an additional 20,275 shares during the last quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 32.2% in the 3rd quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 2,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $628,000 after buying an additional 570 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 30.9% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,595 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $965,000 after acquiring an additional 849 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ROK. BNP Paribas cut shares of Rockwell Automation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, HSBC raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $307.55.

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.