Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Takes Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund opened a new position in Rockwell Automation, buying 3,042 shares valued at about $1.09 million in the first quarter. Several other institutional investors also added to or adjusted their stakes, and institutions now own 75.75% of the stock.
• Wall Street sentiment is mixed but generally constructive: analysts currently rate ROK as a “Moderate Buy” with a consensus price target of $469.33. Recent firms lifted their targets, with some setting goals as high as $515.
• Rockwell Automation reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $3.30 versus the $2.88 estimate and revenue of $2.24 billion, up 11.9% year over year. The company also announced a $1 billion share buyback and a quarterly dividend of $1.38 per share.

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,042 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,092,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ROK. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. now owns 1,358 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.6% in the first quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 574 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,544,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,412 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $549,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,446 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $563,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $448.00 to $487.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $360.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $495.00 to $515.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Mizuho set a $445.00 target price on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $469.33.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP John M. Miller sold 1,054 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 5,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,392,102.30. This trade represents a 15.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 4,024 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.97, for a total value of $1,818,727.28. Following the sale, the vice president owned 134 shares in the company, valued at $60,563.98. This trade represents a 96.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,361 shares of company stock worth $4,189,886. 0.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK stock opened at $457.79 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $461.55 and a 200-day moving average of $421.31. The company has a market cap of $50.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $305.44 and a one year high of $497.36.

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

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 dividend yield of 1.2%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.38%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, June 9th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

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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