NewEdge Advisors LLC Purchases 16,296 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 87.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,998 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,296 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $10,002,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $284,177,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 85,513.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 675,487 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $193,047,000 after purchasing an additional 674,698 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 102.3% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,287,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $368,021,000 after purchasing an additional 651,116 shares during the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $580,095,000 after purchasing an additional 430,498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at $56,887,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on ROK. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $248.00 to $201.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.11.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at $495,260.96. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total transaction of $351,364.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,041,819.50. This trade represents a 25.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,075,923 over the last three months. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $231.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $26.18 billion, a PE ratio of 28.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $264.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $275.53. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $215.00 and a one year high of $308.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is 65.26%.

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.