Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Sells 1,456 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC cut its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 28.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,731 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,456 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $981,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 8.5% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,424 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,401,000 after buying an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,063 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $304,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter worth $281,000. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 14,478 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,872 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at $8,289,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK traded up $4.19 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $346.93. 626,807 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 859,321. The stock's fifty day moving average is $308.03 and its 200 day moving average is $283.36. The stock has a market cap of $39.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.05. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $215.00 and a 1-year high of $348.43.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.36. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.16% 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $2.50 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.51%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $275.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $360.00 target price (up from $345.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, June 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $324.37.

Insider Activity

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 526 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.35, for a total transaction of $171,134.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 983 shares in the company, valued at $319,819.05. This trade represents a 34.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 297 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.31, for a total value 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 represents a 14.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 7,388 shares of company stock valued at $2,307,487. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.