California State Teachers Retirement System Grows Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• CalSTRS dramatically increased its Rockwell Automation stake during the second quarter, acquiring nearly 83.9 million additional shares and reportedly becoming the holder of 75.68% of the company; institutional investors overall own 75.75% of ROK.
• Rockwell exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.49 in adjusted EPS and $2.31 billion in revenue, with revenue up 7.9% year over year. The company maintained FY2026 EPS guidance of $13.00–$13.30 and authorized up to $1 billion in share repurchases.
• Rockwell declared a quarterly dividend of $1.38 per share, equivalent to a 1.3% yield. Analysts remain cautious overall, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $469.14, despite several bullish upgrades.

California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 50,536.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 84,037,850 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 83,871,888 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned 75.68% of Rockwell Automation worth $41,605,459,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ROK. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth approximately $281,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 75.9% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 8,139 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,059,000 after buying an additional 3,513 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 142.7% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,305 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,887,000 after buying an additional 4,295 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 233.6% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,878 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 1,315 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 2nd quarter worth $868,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 0.1%

ROK stock opened at $434.18 on Monday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $332.71 and a fifty-two week high of $497.36. The company has a market capitalization of $48.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.52. The business's 50 day moving average price is $453.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $428.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.38 by $0.11. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 39.83% and a net margin of 13.39%.The company had revenue of $2.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.82 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-13.300 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.73%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, June 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on ROK. Evercore set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. DA Davidson cut their target price on Rockwell Automation from $500.00 to $490.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Argus raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $465.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $501.00 to $514.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Rockwell Automation from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $469.14.

Key Rockwell Automation News

Here are the key news stories impacting Rockwell Automation this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised most forward EPS estimates. Zacks Research increased its forecasts for Q4 2026, Q2-Q4 2027, FY2026, FY2027, Q3 2028 and FY2028. The firm now expects $13.17 EPS for FY2026, $14.39 for FY2027 and $16.78 for FY2028, suggesting improving expectations for Rockwell Automation’s longer-term earnings growth.
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley maintained a Buy rating. The continued bullish view from a major brokerage provides supportive sentiment for ROK, although the broader analyst consensus remains Hold. Morgan Stanley Remains a Buy on Rockwell Automation
• Positive Sentiment: Recent operating results and capital returns remain supportive. Rockwell’s latest quarter exceeded EPS and revenue expectations, with revenue up 7.9% year over year. The company also has authorization for up to $1 billion in share repurchases and pays a quarterly dividend, which may enhance shareholder returns.
• Neutral Sentiment: The investment case is constructive but not uniformly bullish. Zacks maintained a Hold rating, and the consensus target of approximately $469.14 implies potential upside but also reflects caution at ROK’s current valuation. A recent comparison of Rockwell with other Internet of Things companies may influence sector sentiment but provides no clear company-specific catalyst. Q2 earnings highlights: Rockwell Automation vs. Internet of Things stocks
• Negative Sentiment: One near-term EPS estimate was trimmed. Zacks lowered its Q1 2027 forecast to $2.93 from $2.97, partially offsetting the broader upward revisions.
• Negative Sentiment: An executive sold shares. SVP Matheus Bulho sold 400 shares for about $168,056 after selling 467 shares earlier. Because the transactions were conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, they are a limited bearish signal. Rockwell Automation insider share sale

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Patricia A. Watson sold 1,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.43, for a total transaction of $474,573.00. Following the sale, the director owned 6,385 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,754,680.55. The trade was a 14.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.14, for a total transaction of $168,056.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $364,261.38. This trade represents a 31.57% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,557 shares of company stock worth $1,098,256. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

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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