Terra Alpha Investments LLC Invests $1.58 Million in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Terra Alpha Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 5,544 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,584,000. Rockwell Automation makes up about 1.6% of Terra Alpha Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 95.8% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,332 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,141 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 99.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 2,582 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth $912,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 34,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,184,000 after acquiring an additional 1,928 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 462,537 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $132,554,000 after purchasing an additional 25,882 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of ROK opened at $260.09 on Monday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $242.81 and a 1 year high of $308.70. 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 stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $282.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $278.81. The firm has a market cap of $29.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business 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. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.26%.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other news, 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 transaction of $245,874.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,114.56. This represents a 42.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total value of $351,364.33. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,650 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,819.50. The trade was a 25.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,352 shares of company stock worth $1,246,298 in the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. 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 research report on Monday, December 9th. Loop Capital upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Stephens upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $307.68.

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.