Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Decreases Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL cut its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 113,546 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,080 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $39,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 468.8% in the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 91 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Rexford Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 48.7% during the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 900.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $369.88 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $41.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.53. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $438.72. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $406.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $379.64.

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

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $430.00 price target on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $410.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $425.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Evercore assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Monday, December 15th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $440.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $439.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $418.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 5,564 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.02, for a total transaction of $2,236,839.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 94,585 shares in the company, valued at $38,025,061.70. This represents a 5.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Rebecca W. House sold 12,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $404.27, for a total transaction of $4,891,667.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 12,200 shares in the company, valued at $4,932,094. This represents a 49.79% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 66,918 shares of company stock worth $27,101,084. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

About Rockwell Automation

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.