EFG Asset Management North America Corp. Acquires 821 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

EFG Asset Management North America Corp. raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 9.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,737 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 821 shares during the period. EFG Asset Management North America Corp.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $2,784,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 455.6% in the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% during the 4th quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE ROK opened at $272.69 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $279.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $278.79. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $308.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.96, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results 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%. On average, analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 65.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Stephens upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.68.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total transaction of $248,810.28. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,057 shares in the company, valued at $300,219.71. The trade was a 45.32 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total transaction of $255,178.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,633 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $490,242.93. The trade was a 34.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,352 shares of company stock valued at $1,246,298 over the last three months. Corporate 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.