North Star Asset Management Inc. Sells 1,105 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

North Star Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 54,373 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,105 shares during the quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $15,539,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ROK. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $284,177,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 85,513.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 675,487 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $193,047,000 after purchasing an additional 674,698 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 102.3% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,287,731 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $368,021,000 after purchasing an additional 651,116 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,115,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,033,476,000 after purchasing an additional 432,934 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $580,095,000 after purchasing an additional 430,498 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 939 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.24, for a total transaction of $285,681.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $299,067.92. This trade represents a 48.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.13, for a total transaction of $760,325.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,033 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $314,166.29. The trade was a 70.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 6,839 shares of company stock worth $2,014,256. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE ROK traded up $7.29 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $312.83. 944,175 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 877,453. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $260.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $276.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.00 and a 12-month high of $319.12. The firm has a market cap of $35.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.96, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) 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 30.17%. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $275.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $310.37.

About Rockwell Automation

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.