EFG Asset Management Americas Corp. Sells 883 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Key Points

• EFG Asset Management Americas Corp. reduced its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 10.4%, selling 883 shares during the first quarter, resulting in a remaining ownership of 7,604 shares valued at $1,965,000.
• Insider transactions revealed that two senior vice presidents sold a total of 1,490 shares of Rockwell Automation at prices averaging around $326.31 and $304.24, resulting in significant decreases in their ownership percentages.
• Rockwell Automation recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.31 per share, marking a yearly yield of 1.49%, with a payout ratio of 65.99%.

EFG Asset Management Americas Corp. reduced its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 10.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,604 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 883 shares during the period. EFG Asset Management Americas Corp.'s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,965,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ROK. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 29,844.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 702,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $181,588,000 after buying an additional 700,447 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 85,513.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 675,487 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $193,047,000 after buying an additional 674,698 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,115,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,033,476,000 after buying an additional 432,934 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 56.9% in the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 935,726 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $267,421,000 after buying an additional 339,480 shares during the period. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 289.6% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 416,893 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $119,144,000 after buying an additional 309,893 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 2.1%

NYSE ROK traded down $7.29 on Friday, reaching $344.42. The company had a trading volume of 1,087,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 788,511. The firm has a market cap of $38.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.39. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $215.00 and a fifty-two week high of $360.92. The business has a 50 day moving average of $334.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $292.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.16% and a net margin of 11.38%. Rockwell Automation's quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Loop Capital upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $360.00 to $410.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $375.00 target price (up from $350.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, CICC Research assumed coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $381.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $341.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 269 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.26, for a total transaction of $95,564.94. Following the sale, the vice president owned 1,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $573,034.38. This represents a 14.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,063 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,838.16. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,757 shares of company stock valued at $3,138,220 over the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.