Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Has $8.18 Million Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lessened its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 19.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 28,620 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,762 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $8,179,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter worth about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE:ROK opened at $268.27 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $286.26 and its 200-day moving average is $275.01. The company has a market cap of $30.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.40, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $242.81 and a 52-week high of $304.29.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.64 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 63.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on ROK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $304.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total transaction of $245,874.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,114.56. This trade represents a 42.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,363,536. The trade was a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,857 shares of company stock valued at $10,678,037 over the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.