Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by New Mexico Educational Retirement Board

New Mexico Educational Retirement Board cut its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,376 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,536,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ROK. Accredited Investors Inc. grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184,648 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 29,591.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 936,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $251,326,000 after acquiring an additional 933,025 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 33.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,556,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $417,802,000 after acquiring an additional 390,784 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 27.9% in the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 408,336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $116,682,000 after acquiring an additional 88,962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.4% in 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 valued at $303,041,000 after acquiring an additional 67,684 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Stephens upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $308.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total value of $7,973,421.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. This trade represents a 25.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total value of $245,874.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares in the company, 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 three months, insiders have sold 36,240 shares of company stock worth $10,800,555. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $294.81 on Monday. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $286.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $275.97. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $308.70. The stock has a market cap of $33.34 billion, a PE ratio of 35.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.35.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.