79,627 Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK Shares Bought by Aberdeen Group plc

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group increased its Rockwell Automation stake by 62.2% in the third quarter, buying 79,627 shares and bringing its holding to 207,725 shares, valued at about $90.4 million.
• Rockwell beat quarterly EPS estimates ($3.88 versus $3.69), while revenue of $2.33 billion came in below expectations; revenue rose 0.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.45 per share.
• Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $471.33. Shares recently traded at $402.53, down 0.4% on the day.

Aberdeen Group plc increased its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 62.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 207,725 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 79,627 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned about 0.19% of Rockwell Automation worth $90,429,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,538 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,411,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.6% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,022,866 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $445,284,000 after acquiring an additional 63,435 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at approximately $313,000. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 11.2% in the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 6,775 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,949,000 after acquiring an additional 685 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cabot Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.7% during the third quarter. Cabot Wealth Management Inc. now owns 47,408 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $20,638,000 after purchasing an additional 797 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Recent Rockwell Automation Headlines

Investors following ROK have been watching these headlines:

• Positive Sentiment: Rockwell introduced LogixEdge, an industrial PC-based controller combining Logix control, edge computing and containerized applications. The platform is designed to simplify factory systems and support software-defined automation, creating a new product opportunity, though financial impact is not yet known. Article: Rockwell Automation Introduces LogixEdge Controllers
• Negative Sentiment: ETFs were reported as net sellers of ROK shares on Nov. 11. This may add some flow-related pressure, although ETF activity alone does not indicate a change in the company’s fundamentals. Article: ETFs Are Net Sellers of Rockwell Automation
• Negative Sentiment: An analyst highlighted Rockwell’s global tax profile as a risk, with tax rates potentially fluctuating due to jurisdictional factors and government incentives. Such changes could add uncertainty to earnings. Article: Rockwell Automation’s Tax-Rate Risk

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.61, for a total value of $201,305.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,358 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $546,744.38. The trade was a 26.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret bought 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $386.36 per share, for a total transaction of $1,545,440.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 99,285 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,359,752.60. This represents a 4.20% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 3,211 shares of company stock worth $1,366,185 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on ROK. Evercore set a $485.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $426.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $469.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $510.00 to $485.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. Finally, Stephens cut their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $471.33.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.4%

ROK stock traded down $1.67 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $402.53. 913,260 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,074,089. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $426.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $426.80. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $347.53 and a 12-month high of $497.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a current ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.19. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 15.68%. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.34 EPS. The business's revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.500-15.500 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 14.95 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.45 per share. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation's previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Rockwell Automation's payout ratio is currently 43.98%.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

Rockwell Automation, Inc. is an industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its roots date to 1903, when it was founded as the Compression Rheostat Company. The company provides hardware, software and services that help manufacturers automate and manage industrial operations. Its offerings include control systems, sensors, motor-control products, industrial software and services for optimizing production and maintaining equipment. Its Allen-Bradley and FactoryTalk brands are among its best-known product lines.

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