DRW Securities LLC Makes New Investment in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

DRW Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 1,026 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $275,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE ROK opened at $294.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.30 billion, a PE ratio of 35.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.36. 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 $273.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $267.67. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.64 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on ROK. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $287.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,089,000. This represents a 21.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total value of $7,973,421.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,327,482.45. This represents a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 28,746 shares of company stock valued at $8,560,594 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.