Madison Asset Management LLC Buys 4,702 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Madison Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 9.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,514 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 4,702 shares during the period. Madison Asset Management LLC's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $13,569,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Citizens National Bank Trust Department bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth about $31,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 269 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.26, for a total value of $95,564.94. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $573,034.38. This trade represents a 14.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 289 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.33, for a total transaction of $94,309.37. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 3,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,042,950.68. The trade was a 8.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,757 shares of company stock worth $3,138,220 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:ROK traded up $1.86 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $358.87. The company had a trading volume of 642,538 shares, compared to its average volume of 782,185. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $329.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $289.80. The company has a market capitalization of $40.45 billion, a PE ratio of 45.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 1.38. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $215.00 and a one year high of $360.92.

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

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's payout ratio is currently 65.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROK has been the subject of a number of research reports. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $360.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $341.11.

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.