North Dakota State Investment Board Makes New Investment in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board opened a new position in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter, buying 4,476 shares worth about $1.74 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with 75.75% of Rockwell Automation shares held by hedge funds and other institutions, while several large funds also increased their stakes.
• Insiders have been selling shares: VP Scott Genereux and SVP Rebecca W. House both sold stock in late February, and insiders have sold 59,087 shares worth about $24.3 million over the past three months.

North Dakota State Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,476 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,741,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,206,311 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,527,249,000 after purchasing an additional 114,469 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,793,425 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,675,446,000 after purchasing an additional 42,809 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,423,449 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $497,538,000 after purchasing an additional 49,477 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,235,788 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $431,945,000 after purchasing an additional 132,637 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 14.1% in the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 989,429 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $345,835,000 after acquiring an additional 122,437 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP Scott Genereux sold 17,407 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $404.61, for a total value of $7,043,046.27. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 3,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,340,877.54. This trade represents a 84.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Rebecca W. House sold 12,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $404.27, for a total transaction of $4,891,667.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 12,200 shares in the company, valued at $4,932,094. The trade was a 49.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 59,087 shares of company stock valued at $24,296,483 in the last three months. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

ROK opened at $422.79 on Wednesday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $298.70 and a 1 year high of $463.48. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $395.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $397.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.04 billion, a PE ratio of 43.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.56.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.42. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.36% and a return on equity of 37.54%. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.45 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation's revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.01 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $360.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Rockwell Automation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $448.00 to $487.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $525.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $449.16.

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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