Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension Makes New Investment in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension disclosed a new first-quarter stake in Rockwell Automation, buying 50,802 shares worth about $18.2 million.
• Rockwell Automation reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.30 topping estimates and revenue of $2.24 billion beating expectations; revenue rose 11.9% year over year.
• The company also announced a $1 billion share buyback and a quarterly dividend of $1.38 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $469.33.

Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 50,802 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $18,232,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,556,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 744,814 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $291,073,000 after purchasing an additional 127,733 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 911.0% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 91,808 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,720,000 after purchasing an additional 82,727 shares during the period. Maridea Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 580.0% during the 4th quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,522 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,148,000 after purchasing an additional 4,710 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $281,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $460.55 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $460.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $417.93. The stock has a market cap of $51.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.54. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $305.44 and a 1-year high of $497.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.42. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.54% and a net margin of 12.36%.The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.45 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS. Analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.38%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, June 9th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $525.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Rockwell Automation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $404.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $500.00 to $555.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Mizuho set a $445.00 target price on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $469.33.

Insider Activity

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP John M. Miller sold 1,054 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $426.02, for a total transaction of $449,025.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 5,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,392,102.30. This trade represents a 15.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Christopher Nardecchia sold 2,538 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $446.43, for a total value of $1,133,039.34. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 14,232 shares in the company, valued at $6,353,591.76. This represents a 15.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,361 shares of company stock worth $4,189,886. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company's product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.

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