James P. Keane Sells 2,000 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Stock

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Director James P. Keane sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.00, for a total value of $592,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,518 shares in the company, valued at $3,409,328. The trade was a 14.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $295.14 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $274.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $268.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.64, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.36. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 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 firm had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 7.1% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 4,680 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,363,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.5% in the first quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 1,805 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $526,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 336.5% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 27,307 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,956,000 after purchasing an additional 21,051 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 30.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 7,122 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,075,000 after purchasing an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price objective on the stock. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $287.13.

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.