Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Director Sells $592,000.00 in Stock

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Director James P. Keane sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.00, for a total transaction of $592,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,409,328. This trade represents a 14.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $295.14 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $274.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $268.03. The company has a market cap of $33.32 billion, a PE ratio of 35.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.36. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $242.81 and a one year high of $312.76. 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 (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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 $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ROK. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Three investment 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, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $287.13.

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.