Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) CEO Blake D. Moret Sells 26,700 Shares

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total transaction of $7,973,421.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 78,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. This represents a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE ROK traded up $7.98 during trading on Monday, hitting $298.84. 2,235,122 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 895,555. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s fifty day moving average is $272.12 and its 200 day moving average is $267.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $242.81 and a fifty-two week high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.64 earnings per share. 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROK has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 target price on the stock. BNP Paribas began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $286.13.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its position in 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 valued at $1,083,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.9% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 680 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.7% in the second quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $518,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hancock Whitney Corp grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.5% during the first quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 1,805 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $526,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.