Pallas Capital Advisors LLC Acquires New Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 898 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE:ROK traded down $7.78 during trading on Friday, hitting $317.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 696,490 shares, compared to its average volume of 884,643. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $215.00 and a fifty-two week high of $328.90. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $279.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $279.78. The company has a market capitalization of $35.77 billion, a PE ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.38.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.36. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $327.00 to $371.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $317.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.01, for a total value of $147,505.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,838 shares of the company's stock, valued at $837,238.38. The trade was a 14.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 526 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.35, for a total value of $171,134.10. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 983 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $319,819.05. This represents a 34.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,681 shares of company stock worth $2,382,987. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.