Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Alyeska Investment Group L.P.

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. reduced its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 98.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,848 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 147,674 shares during the quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P.'s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $814,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,876,530 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,965,774,000 after acquiring an additional 81,079 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,115,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,033,476,000 after purchasing an additional 432,934 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,734,430 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $779,426,000 after purchasing an additional 51,228 shares during the period. Amundi grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $580,095,000 after buying an additional 430,498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,570,036 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $448,701,000 after buying an additional 13,744 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on ROK. Stephens raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $283.00 to $327.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $308.37.

Insider Activity

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total value of $351,364.33. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,041,819.50. The trade was a 25.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at $495,260.96. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,250 shares of company stock valued at $1,223,428. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 1.2 %

Rockwell Automation stock traded up $3.64 during trading on Friday, reaching $294.88. The stock had a trading volume of 1,024,672 shares, compared to its average volume of 869,455. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $215.00 and a 52-week high of $308.70. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $251.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $33.34 billion, a PE ratio of 36.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.99%.

Rockwell Automation Company 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.