Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 900 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lessened its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 900 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $6,629,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ROK. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 1,741 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.67, for a total transaction of $516,502.47. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 80,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,825,271.03. This represents a 2.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total value of $245,874.40. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $329,114.56. This represents a 42.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,540 shares of company stock valued at $1,935,134 over the last three months. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Stephens raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $308.05.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

NYSE ROK opened at $292.40 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $33.06 billion, a PE ratio of 36.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.35. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $308.70. 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 firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $286.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $277.78.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. Research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.26%.

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.