DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main Reduces Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main reduced its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,130 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,089 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $12,040,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 204,679 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $54,948,000 after purchasing an additional 11,161 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA now owns 30,496 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,715,000 after acquiring an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 920 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 455.6% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 24,479 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,996,000 after purchasing an additional 1,365 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total value of $255,178.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,633 shares of the company's stock, valued at $490,242.93. This represents a 34.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total transaction of $351,364.33. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 3,650 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,041,819.50. This trade represents a 25.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,689 shares of company stock valued at $2,269,435. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK stock traded up $9.28 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $309.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,350,930 shares, compared to its average volume of 874,255. The stock has a market cap of $34.95 billion, a PE ratio of 38.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a 50 day moving average of $252.41 and a 200 day moving average of $274.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.00 and a 12-month high of $310.76.

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

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Rockwell Automation from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $201.00 to $271.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $308.37.

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.