Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Trims Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC reduced its stake in Rockwell Automation by 5.4%, owning 28,204 shares worth approximately $7.29 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Rockwell Automation's stock is currently down 1.3%, with its price at $342.95 and a market cap of $38.56 billion.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.31 per share, indicating an annualized dividend yield of 1.5%.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 5.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 28,204 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,620 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $7,287,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 4,195 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,199,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,652 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,462,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.6% in the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 7,708 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,992,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Kelly Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.4% in the first quarter. Kelly Financial Services LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $283,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 1.1% during the first quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,097 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,059,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.1%

Rockwell Automation stock traded down $0.3960 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $339.2240. 126,240 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 941,938. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $360.92. The company has a market cap of $38.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a fifty day moving average of $340.16 and a 200-day moving average of $297.42.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 30.14% and a net margin of 12.03%.The business had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.71 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 289 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.33, for a total transaction of $94,309.37. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 269 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.26, for a total value of $95,564.94. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 1,613 shares in the company, valued at $573,034.38. This trade represents a 14.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 5,818 shares of company stock worth $1,944,708. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target 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. Bank of America upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $360.00 to $410.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. TD Cowen upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $275.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $345.00 price target on Rockwell Automation and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.16.

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.