Rockwell Automation Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:ROK)

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) saw unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Investors purchased 2,755 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 189% compared to the typical daily volume of 953 put options.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE ROK traded down $5.63 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $393.16. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 653,138 shares, compared to its average volume of 970,681. Rockwell Automation has a 1 year low of $215.00 and a 1 year high of $438.72. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $406.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $376.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 34.92%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.83 EPS. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.400-12.200 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Rockwell Automation will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 63.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 229 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $401.92, for a total value of $92,039.68. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,058 shares in the company, valued at $827,151.36. This represents a 10.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.00, for a total transaction of $313,600.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 1,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $483,728. This represents a 39.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 25,531 shares of company stock valued at $10,259,637. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 7.1% during the third quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 61,834 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,613,000 after buying an additional 4,086 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 180.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 5,842 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,042,000 after acquiring an additional 3,759 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth approximately $281,000. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $777,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 796.0% during the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 97,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,342,000 after purchasing an additional 86,500 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $410.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $380.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $460.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Sunday, February 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $418.33.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company’s product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.