Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Purchases 16,860 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 2.0%, now owning 867,586 shares valued at approximately $224 million.
• Rockwell Automation reported earnings of $2.82 per share for the last quarter, surpassing expectations and showing a 4.5% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.31 per share, reflecting a dividend yield of 1.5% and a payout ratio of 61.5%.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 2.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 867,586 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 16,860 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.77% of Rockwell Automation worth $224,148,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Citizens National Bank Trust Department bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.1%

ROK traded down $0.3610 during trading on Thursday, reaching $339.2590. 531,289 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 944,565. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $215.00 and a one year high of $360.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.14 billion, a PE ratio of 39.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $340.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $297.42.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.15. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.03% and a return on equity of 30.14%. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.71 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's payout ratio is presently 61.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 289 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.33, for a total value of $94,309.37. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 3,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,042,950.68. This represents a 8.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 363 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.32, for a total transaction of $118,454.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,325,838.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 5,818 shares of company stock worth $1,944,708. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on ROK. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $275.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. CICC Research began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $381.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $375.00 price objective (up previously from $350.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $340.16.

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.