Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Stock Price

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by equities research analysts at Barclays from $350.00 to $370.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the industrial products company's stock. Barclays's target price would suggest a potential upside of 8.76% from the company's current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $360.00 price target (up previously from $345.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Friday, June 13th. TD Cowen upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $275.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, CICC Research started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Monday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $381.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $332.00.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

ROK stock traded up $2.04 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $340.19. The stock had a trading volume of 574,304 shares, compared to its average volume of 865,559. Rockwell Automation has a 52 week low of $215.00 and a 52 week high of $348.43. The stock's 50 day moving average is $311.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $284.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market cap of $38.35 billion, a PE ratio of 42.85, a PEG ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.38.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.36. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.16% and a net margin of 11.38%. The company had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.50 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation's revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Isaac Woods sold 297 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.31, for a total transaction of $96,914.07. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $551,790.21. This trade represents a 14.94% 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 Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 289 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.33, for a total value of $94,309.37. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 3,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,042,950.68. This represents a 8.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,388 shares of company stock valued at $2,307,487 in the last three months. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 3,775 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,079,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,896 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $542,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 794 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $205,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 4,195 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,199,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

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.