Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Position Reduced by Voloridge Investment Management LLC

Voloridge Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 46.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 52,168 shares during the quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $17,251,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ROK. Waverly Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 158.7% in the 4th quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 2,398 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $685,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 4,484 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,282,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC now owns 166,890 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $47,695,000 after purchasing an additional 1,458 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 53.0% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 103,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,436,000 after purchasing an additional 35,700 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,997 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,571,000 after purchasing an additional 593 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.13, for a total value of $760,325.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $314,166.29. This represents a 70.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,260.96. This represents a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 6,839 shares of company stock valued at $2,014,256. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of ROK stock opened at $306.20 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $215.00 and a 12 month high of $310.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business’s 50 day moving average is $259.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $276.10. The company has a market cap of $34.51 billion, a PE ratio of 38.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.36. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. The company had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is 65.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on ROK shares. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BNP Paribas upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.37.

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.