1,017 Shares in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Bought by Verity & Verity LLC

Verity & Verity LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,017 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $291,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,648,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,247,839,000 after acquiring an additional 11,949 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,683,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $717,865,000 after purchasing an additional 14,040 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 33.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,556,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $417,802,000 after purchasing an additional 390,784 shares during the period. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,184,648 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,128,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $303,041,000 after purchasing an additional 67,684 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of ROK opened at $287.06 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $242.81 and a 52-week high of $307.71. The company has a market cap of $32.45 billion, a PE ratio of 34.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.36. The business has a fifty day moving average of $287.58 and a 200 day moving average of $274.10.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.64 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.37 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Stephens upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Mizuho upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned 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 price target of $304.16.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total transaction of $132,660.69. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,800 shares in the company, valued at $1,363,536. This trade represents a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total value of $83,967.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $961,695.36. This represents a 8.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,436 shares of company stock worth $10,832,549 in the last 90 days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.