XML Financial LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

XML Financial LLC decreased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 15.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,640 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. XML Financial LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $451,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 951.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,532,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,611,915,000 after purchasing an additional 5,006,706 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 3.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,048,986 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,092,891,000 after purchasing an additional 438,356 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth $118,345,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 82.4% in the first quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 859,717 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $250,461,000 after purchasing an additional 388,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 32.0% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,510,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,912,000 after buying an additional 365,795 shares during 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 brokerages have recently commented on ROK. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $295.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $290.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $280.14.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP Isaac Woods sold 297 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.38, for a total transaction of $76,144.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $469,944.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 248 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.37, for a total value of $63,579.76. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,088,547.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 297 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.38, for a total value of $76,144.86. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $469,944.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,732 shares of company stock valued at $445,133 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ROK traded up $0.14 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $265.55. The stock had a trading volume of 849,778 shares, compared to its average volume of 950,922. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $317.74. The company has a market capitalization of $30.27 billion, a PE ratio of 25.96, a PEG ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 1.37. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $266.14 and its 200 day moving average is $272.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.63. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.83% and a net margin of 13.19%. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.01 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 10.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 12th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.88%.

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.