Raymond James Financial Inc. Has $92.26 Million Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 213.7% during the first quarter, owning approximately 0.32% of the company, valued at $92.26 million.
• Rockwell Automation reported earnings of $2.82 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations of $2.67, with revenues of $2.14 billion for the latest quarter.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.31 to be paid on September 10th, yielding 1.5% annually, with a dividend payout ratio of 61.50%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 213.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 357,080 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 243,249 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.32% of Rockwell Automation worth $92,263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,424 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,401,000 after buying an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $608,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,652 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,462,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $281,000. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 128.7% during the 1st quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 4,382 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 2,466 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK traded up $11.2350 on Friday, reaching $350.7550. 663,160 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,079,796. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $215.00 and a fifty-two week high of $360.92. The company's 50 day moving average is $341.12 and its 200-day moving average is $298.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.44 billion, a PE ratio of 41.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.14% and a net margin of 12.03%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is presently 61.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In related news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 526 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.35, for a total transaction of $171,134.10. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $319,819.05. This trade represents a 34.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 363 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.32, for a total value of $118,454.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 4,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,325,838.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,818 shares of company stock valued at $1,944,708 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ROK. KeyCorp increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $375.00 price target (up from $350.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Barclays increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $340.16.

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.