Metis Global Partners LLC Purchases 734 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Metis Global Partners LLC grew its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,766 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $2,622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,048,986 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,092,891,000 after purchasing an additional 438,356 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 951.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,532,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,611,915,000 after purchasing an additional 5,006,706 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 32.0% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,510,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,912,000 after purchasing an additional 365,795 shares during the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% in the 3rd quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,184,648 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.4% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 986,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $264,929,000 after buying an additional 41,605 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ROK shares. BNP Paribas started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. Barclays increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $286.13.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $286.15 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $268.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $266.83. The company has a market capitalization of $32.31 billion, a PE ratio of 34.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 60.39%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback 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 buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by 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.