Northwest Investment Counselors LLC Buys 78 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Northwest Investment Counselors LLC raised its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 0.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $3,559,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at $28,000. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Webster Bank N. A. acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at about $44,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Monday, July 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $286.47.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:ROK traded down $2.82 on Monday, hitting $270.00. 205,327 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 881,511. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.67, a P/E/G ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $264.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $267.50. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.63. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.03 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.09% and a net margin of 11.56%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.01 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.