Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Purchased by Isthmus Partners LLC

Isthmus Partners LLC lifted its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,699 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,223 shares during the period. Isthmus Partners LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $11,195,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 14.0% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 4,897 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,315,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,128,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $303,041,000 after acquiring an additional 67,684 shares during the period. Fiduciary Trust Co raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 1.5% during the third quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 9,630 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,585,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 18.3% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 51,334 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,781,000 after acquiring an additional 7,931 shares during the period. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 9.7% during the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $287.13.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK opened at $294.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $33.30 billion, a PE ratio of 35.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $273.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $267.86. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.64 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,363,536. The trade was a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,746 shares of company stock worth $8,560,594 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.