Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Buys 163 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 9.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,893 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 163 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROK. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 4,033 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,083,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. now owns 1,082 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.2% in the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 1,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $518,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $629,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total value of $83,967.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $961,695.36. This represents a 8.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total transaction of $7,973,421.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,115 shares in the company, 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 have sold 35,857 shares of company stock worth $10,678,037 over the last 90 days. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of ROK opened at $302.14 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $285.72 and its 200 day moving average is $275.06. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $308.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $34.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.35.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stephens raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, HSBC raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $304.16.

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.