Commerce Bank Sells 17,185 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Commerce Bank cut its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 23.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 55,298 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 17,185 shares during the period. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $14,845,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 33.2% in the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the period. Vicus Capital bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter worth approximately $304,000. Comerica Bank raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.1% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 60,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $17,485,000 after acquiring an additional 3,425 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at $912,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter valued at $2,817,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ROK shares. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $286.13.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $280.08 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $270.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $267.03. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $312.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market cap of $31.62 billion, a PE ratio of 33.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.64 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 60.39%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total transaction of $132,660.69. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,363,536. This represents a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.