PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators Takes $2.50 Million Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators disclosed a new stake in Rockwell Automation, buying 6,424 shares valued at about $2.5 million in the fourth quarter.
• Rockwell Automation reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.30 topping estimates and revenue of $2.24 billion beating expectations; sales rose 11.9% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.38 per share, while analysts generally remain positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $449.16.

PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 6,424 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,499,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 61,834 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $21,613,000 after purchasing an additional 4,086 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth $1,556,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 180.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 5,842 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,042,000 after acquiring an additional 3,759 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 744,814 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $291,073,000 after acquiring an additional 127,733 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 911.0% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 91,808 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,720,000 after acquiring an additional 82,727 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 1,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $480,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 4,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,774,800. The trade was a 21.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 1,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.50, for a total transaction of $484,375.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $671,925. The trade was a 41.89% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,308 shares of company stock worth $5,339,812. Insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE:ROK opened at $446.48 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $418.83 and its 200-day moving average is $404.04. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $305.44 and a 52-week high of $468.11. 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 company has a market cap of $49.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.41, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.57.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.45 EPS. The business's revenue 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. Equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Rockwell Automation's payout ratio is presently 57.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $495.00 to $515.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $404.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $435.00 to $410.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $400.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $449.16.

Rockwell Automation 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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