Knuff & Co LLC Purchases 41 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Knuff & Co LLC increased its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 41.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 141 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the quarter. Knuff & Co LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $40,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ROK. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% in the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.14, for a total transaction of $145,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $552,716.70. This trade represents a 20.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total transaction of $245,874.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $329,114.56. This represents a 42.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,352 shares of company stock valued at $1,246,298. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.68.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $265.53 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $30.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.07, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $283.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $278.93. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $242.81 and a one year high of $308.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued 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 fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.