Global Trust Asset Management LLC Acquires 512 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Global Trust Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 18.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,284 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 512 shares during the quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $939,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target for the company. Mizuho increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $304.16.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total transaction of $245,874.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,114.56. The trade was a 42.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,436 shares of company stock worth $10,832,549. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 1.5 %

ROK opened at $290.99 on Wednesday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $307.71. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $288.06 and a 200 day moving average of $274.52. The firm has a market cap of $32.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share 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%. Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.64 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

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.