Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Acquired by Waverly Advisors LLC

Waverly Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 158.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,398 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,471 shares during the quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $685,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total value of $351,364.33. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,041,819.50. This represents a 25.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total transaction of $248,810.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,057 shares in the company, valued at $300,219.71. The trade was a 45.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,839 shares of company stock valued at $2,014,256 in the last 90 days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.3%

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $305.50 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.43 billion, a PE ratio of 38.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $215.00 and a 12 month high of $310.78. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $260.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $276.23. 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 (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.97 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. The business’s revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.50 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.72%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 65.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ROK shares. Citigroup raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $283.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. BNP Paribas upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.37.

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.