Connable Office Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Connable Office Inc. reduced its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 21.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,145 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,922 shares during the quarter. Connable Office Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,918,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 951.4% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,532,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,611,915,000 after buying an additional 5,006,706 shares during the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% in the 3rd quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,184,648 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 29,591.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 936,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $251,326,000 after purchasing an additional 933,025 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 1,119.3% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 763,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $210,135,000 after purchasing an additional 700,745 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 3.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,048,986 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,092,891,000 after purchasing an additional 438,356 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE ROK opened at $286.43 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $312.76. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $267.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $266.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.34 billion, a PE ratio of 34.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.64 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 60.39%.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $285.13.

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.