Barclays Has Lowered Expectations for Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Stock Price

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) had its price objective decreased by research analysts at Barclays from $300.00 to $285.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 3.91% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on ROK. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BNP Paribas cut shares of Rockwell Automation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $307.68.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

ROK traded down $2.26 on Monday, hitting $274.29. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 240,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 830,065. Rockwell Automation has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $308.70. The firm has a market cap of $31.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $284.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $278.91.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. Analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total transaction of $255,178.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,633 shares in the company, valued at approximately $490,242.93. This represents a 34.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total value of $248,810.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,219.71. This trade represents a 45.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,352 shares of company stock valued at $1,246,298. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ROK. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Company 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.