Metis Global Partners LLC Buys 333 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,099 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 333 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $2,886,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 4,033 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 4,195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. now owns 1,082 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.2% in the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 1,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $518,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $287.51 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $286.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $278.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $308.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.80, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.35.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. As a group, research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 65.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.55.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total transaction of $255,178.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,633 shares in the company, valued at $490,242.93. This represents a 34.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 1,741 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.67, for a total value of $516,502.47. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 80,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,825,271.03. This represents a 2.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 6,540 shares of company stock worth $1,935,134. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation 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.