Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Buys 309,893 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 289.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 416,893 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 309,893 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned approximately 0.37% of Rockwell Automation worth $119,144,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. West Oak Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% in the 4th 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. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 41.0% during the fourth quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total transaction of $248,810.28. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $300,219.71. This trade represents a 45.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total transaction of $75,500.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,260.96. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,075,923 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on ROK. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Stephens upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. BNP Paribas raised Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $283.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $297.11.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE ROK traded down $3.11 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $245.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 378,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 868,324. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $257.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $274.45. The stock has a market cap of $27.73 billion, a PE ratio of 30.56, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $215.00 and a 52 week high of $308.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. Equities research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.