John M. Miller Sells 467 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Stock

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total transaction of $132,660.69. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,363,536. This trade represents a 8.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $278.13 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.40 billion, a PE ratio of 33.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $270.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.11.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.64 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ROK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $286.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 33.2% during the 3rd quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Vicus Capital acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $304,000. Comerica Bank boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.1% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 60,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $17,485,000 after buying an additional 3,425 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth about $912,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation during the first quarter worth $2,817,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.