Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Sells 2,637 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC cut its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 179,503 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,637 shares during the quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $51,300,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,893 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $541,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,032,000 after buying an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $714,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,008,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $288,136,000 after buying an additional 21,360 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,711,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on ROK shares. UBS Group started 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. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays dropped their price objective on 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. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $304.16.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of ROK opened at $268.27 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $30.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.35. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $242.81 and a 1 year high of $304.29. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $285.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $274.96. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The firm’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.64 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of Rockwell Automation 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 in the company, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. This trade represents a 25.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total value of $245,874.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,114.56. This represents a 42.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,857 shares of company stock worth $10,678,037. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.