Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ Increases Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 7.8%, acquiring an additional 4,397 shares to own a total of 61,121 shares worth approximately $15.79 million.
• Insider selling activity includes SVP Christopher Nardecchia and Director James P. Keane selling a combined total of 3,551 shares, indicating a decrease in their ownership stakes.
• Rockwell Automation reported a quarterly EPS of $2.82, surpassing analysts' expectations, alongside announcing a quarterly dividend of $1.31 scheduled for payout on September 10th.

Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 7.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 61,121 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,397 shares during the period. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ owned approximately 0.05% of Rockwell Automation worth $15,792,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Citizens National Bank Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, Director James P. Keane sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.06, for a total value of $1,068,180.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 9,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,272,903.52. This represents a 24.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 526 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.35, for a total transaction of $171,134.10. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 983 shares in the company, valued at $319,819.05. This represents a 34.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 8,145 shares of company stock worth $2,801,114 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ROK. Loop Capital lifted their price target 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $345.00 price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $340.16.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

ROK traded down $5.87 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $337.56. The stock had a trading volume of 735,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 942,230. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.64, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.41. The company's 50-day moving average price is $344.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $301.11. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $360.92.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.71 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

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 paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is presently 61.50%.

Rockwell Automation 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.