HM Payson & Co. Sells 768 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

HM Payson & Co. lessened its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 24.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,371 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 768 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $678,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 455.6% in the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 1,121 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.01, for a total transaction of $338,553.21. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,690,525.54. This trade represents a 1.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.14, for a total value of $145,070.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $552,716.70. The trade was a 20.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 5,823 shares of company stock valued at $1,690,564. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ROK shares. KeyCorp upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. HSBC upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered Rockwell Automation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $308.47.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $276.55 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $31.27 billion, a PE ratio of 34.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $308.70. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $284.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $278.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. Equities analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 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.