Hartford Investment Management Co. Sells 185 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Hartford Investment Management Co. decreased its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,952 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 185 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,987,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during 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 period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total value of $245,874.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,114.56. This trade represents a 42.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total transaction of $132,660.69. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,363,536. This trade represents a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,857 shares of company stock valued at $10,678,037. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $298.51 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $308.70. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $286.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. Equities research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted 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. Bank of America raised their price target on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $308.05.

Rockwell Automation 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.