Strong Tower Advisory Services Purchases 68 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Strong Tower Advisory Services increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,472 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Strong Tower Advisory Services’ holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $457,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ROK. Imprint Wealth LLC grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 32,845.0% during the second quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 1,254,546 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $125,455,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250,738 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 87,404.1% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,236,433 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,468,000 after acquiring an additional 1,235,020 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter valued at $215,125,000. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,741,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $706,004,000 after acquiring an additional 457,383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 13.8% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,638,992 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $774,411,000 after acquiring an additional 320,524 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $145,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $691,070. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Rockwell Automation news, CEO Blake D. Moret acquired 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $283.64 per share, with a total value of $992,740.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,901,262.60. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $145,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,383 shares in the company, valued at $691,070. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 17,877 shares of company stock valued at $5,058,772. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on ROK. UBS Group raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $305.00 to $360.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $351.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $324.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Berenberg Bank restated a “hold” rating and issued a $290.00 target price (down previously from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $254.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $308.36.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $291.33 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $284.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $284.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $252.11 and a 52-week high of $348.52. The company has a market cap of $33.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.72, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.43.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.62 by ($0.58). Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.22% and a net margin of 13.35%. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.46 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 12.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.57%.

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.