Capital Investment Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 7.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,073 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 142 shares during the quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC lifted its stake in 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. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $325.27 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $273.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $279.24. The company has a market cap of $36.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.51, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $215.00 and a 52-week high of $328.90.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.36. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. The company had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.50 EPS. Rockwell Automation’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ROK shares. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $275.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $316.21.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Christopher Nardecchia sold 551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.31, for a total transaction of $179,796.81. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 12,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,147,726.41. This represents a 4.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.33, for a total transaction of $81,582.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $492,431.97. The trade was a 14.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,155 shares of company stock worth $2,211,853 in the last three months. 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.