Insider Selling: Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) CEO Sells 1,121 Shares of Stock

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) CEO Blake D. Moret sold 1,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.01, for a total value of $338,553.21. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 81,754 shares in the company, valued at $24,690,525.54. The trade was a 1.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ROK traded down $5.00 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $293.72. The stock had a trading volume of 900,475 shares, compared to its average volume of 889,968. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. The company has a 50 day moving average of $278.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $269.09. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $312.76. The firm has a market cap of $33.16 billion, a PE ratio of 35.47, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm’s revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. Research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

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

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Cultivar Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter worth about $46,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on ROK shares. Citigroup upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $313.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, KeyCorp raised Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $294.75.

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.