Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec Has $7.93 Million Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec has reduced its stake in Rockwell Automation by 3.5%, selling 1,129 shares and bringing its total holdings to 30,694 shares, valued at approximately $7.93 million.
• Rockwell Automation has received several upgrades from brokerages, with Bank of America increasing its price target from $360.00 to $410.00, indicating strong analyst confidence in the company's prospects.
• The company's recent earnings report showed revenue growth of 4.5% year-over-year, with an EPS of $2.82, exceeding analysts' estimates and highlighting its strong financial performance.

Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec cut its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 3.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,694 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,129 shares during the quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $7,931,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ROK. Perbak Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at about $552,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 90,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $23,387,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at about $339,000. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at about $576,000. Finally, Night Squared LP acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,709,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Rockwell Automation stock traded down $2.61 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $339.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 539,564 shares, compared to its average volume of 831,771. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $215.00 and a 1-year high of $360.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $345.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $302.21. The company has a market cap of $38.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.82, a PEG ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 1.41.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.15. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.03% and a return on equity of 30.14%. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 (DPR) is 61.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $371.00 to $363.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. CICC Research started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $381.00 price target on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.16.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Christopher Nardecchia sold 551 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.31, for a total value of $179,796.81. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 12,711 shares in the company, valued at $4,147,726.41. This trade represents a 4.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 1,435 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.08, for a total value of $499,494.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 3,787 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,318,178.96. This represents a 27.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,445 shares of company stock worth $3,267,779 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

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.