GHP Investment Advisors Inc. Purchases 3,438 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 6.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 53,786 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,438 shares during the quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $17,866,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 59.6% in the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 166 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 21st. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $347.94.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $368.89 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $375.02. The stock has a market cap of $41.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.41. The company’s fifty day moving average is $348.01 and its 200 day moving average is $327.29.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.15. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.03% and a return on equity of 30.14%. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.71 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a $1.38 dividend. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.31. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 61.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 1,435 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.08, for a total value of $499,494.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,318,178.96. The trade was a 27.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director James P. Keane sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.06, for a total transaction of $1,068,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 9,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,272,903.52. This represents a 24.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 30,375 shares of company stock valued at $10,661,109 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.