Corient IA LLC Makes New $388,000 Investment in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Corient IA LLC acquired 1,500 shares of Rockwell Automation, valued at approximately $388,000, marking a new investment position in the 1st quarter.
• Several institutional investors significantly increased their stakes in Rockwell Automation, including GAMMA Investing LLC, which raised its position by 29,844.4%.
• Rockwell Automation announced a quarterly dividend of $1.31, with a dividend yield of 1.5% and a payout ratio of 61.50% for its shareholders.

Corient IA LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,500 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $388,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.5% during the fourth 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 acquiring an additional 432,934 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 11.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,819,379 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $470,091,000 after acquiring an additional 191,370 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,579,956 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $408,229,000 after buying an additional 9,920 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,448,160 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $374,176,000 after buying an additional 30,837 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,391,331 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $397,628,000 after buying an additional 171,604 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ROK shares. Wells Fargo & Company set a $345.00 price target on shares of Rockwell Automation and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. TD Cowen raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $275.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $392.00 price target (up previously from $371.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.16.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In related news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.02, for a total transaction of $160,010.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,709 shares in the company, valued at $866,934.18. This represents a 15.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 526 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.35, for a total transaction of $171,134.10. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $319,819.05. This trade represents a 34.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,818 shares of company stock worth $1,944,708 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK traded down $0.3610 on Thursday, hitting $339.2590. The stock had a trading volume of 531,289 shares, compared to its average volume of 944,565. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $360.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $340.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $297.42. The company has a market capitalization of $38.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.03% and a return on equity of 30.14%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is 61.50%.

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.