BNP Paribas Financial Markets Acquires 5,844 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 4.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 149,243 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 5,844 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned 0.13% of Rockwell Automation worth $40,066,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the third 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. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

ROK opened at $294.95 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $33.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.62, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.36. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $273.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $267.86. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. Rockwell Automation’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.64 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. The trade was a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 28,746 shares of company stock valued at $8,560,594. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $287.13.

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.