Bill Few Associates Inc. Lowers Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Bill Few Associates Inc. cut its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 0.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 31 shares during the period. Rockwell Automation accounts for approximately 1.3% of Bill Few Associates Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Bill Few Associates Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $4,565,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 5.7% in the second quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,192 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $728,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 8.5% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,424 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,401,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.7% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $608,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.8% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,652 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $281,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of ROK opened at $333.79 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $37.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $343.79 and a 200 day moving average of $315.04. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $360.92.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.03% and a return on equity of 30.14%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, Director James P. Keane sold 3,000 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.06, for a total value of $1,068,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 9,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,272,903.52. The trade was a 24.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 269 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.26, for a total transaction of $95,564.94. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 1,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $573,034.38. This trade represents a 14.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,922 shares of company stock worth $11,191,812 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ROK shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $375.00 target price (up previously from $350.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 21st. Bank of America raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $360.00 to $410.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $340.68.

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.