Davis R M Inc. Has $22.95 Million Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Davis R M Inc. grew its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 85,468 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,105 shares during the quarter. Davis R M Inc. owned about 0.08% of Rockwell Automation worth $22,945,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 33.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,556,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $417,802,000 after buying an additional 390,784 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% during the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184,648 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 4.4% during 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 acquiring an additional 41,605 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 29,591.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 936,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $251,326,000 after purchasing an additional 933,025 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 842,012 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,789,000 after purchasing an additional 48,951 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 4.5 %

Shares of ROK stock opened at $290.86 on Monday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $312.76. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $271.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $267.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. 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 firm posted $3.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 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 $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date 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 stock buyback 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 purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ROK shares. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target for the company. Mizuho upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $286.13.

Insider Activity

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total value of $132,660.69. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,363,536. The trade was a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.