Steph & Co. Makes New $123,000 Investment in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Steph & Co. purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 431 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $123,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 4,033 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.2% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 1,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $518,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Second Line Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.1% in the second quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 963 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $265,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.1% during the third quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $629,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total transaction of $7,973,421.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. The trade was a 25.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total value of $245,874.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,114.56. This represents a 42.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,436 shares of company stock worth $10,832,549. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $281.02 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $287.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $274.05. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $307.71. The firm has a market cap of $31.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.64 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 63.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ROK. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $304.16.

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.