Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada lowered its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 39.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 464,229 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 296,705 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.42% of Rockwell Automation worth $166,603,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rokos Capital Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,936,000. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 145.3% during the first quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 5,771 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,071,000 after purchasing an additional 3,418 shares in the last quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.0% during the first quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd now owns 1,060 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.3% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 91,060 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $32,676,000 after purchasing an additional 2,022 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KCM Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 17.6% in the first quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 608 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $218,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.58, for a total transaction of $269,748.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,994,786.46. This represents a 11.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 550 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $447.73, for a total value of $246,251.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,237,525.72. The trade was a 16.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 9,361 shares of company stock valued at $4,189,886. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ROK. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $501.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $470.00 to $527.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. 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 research report on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Rockwell Automation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $469.33.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of ROK stock opened at $471.20 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $464.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $423.80. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $305.44 and a twelve month high of $497.36. The company has a market capitalization of $52.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.98, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 12.36% and a return on equity of 37.54%. Rockwell Automation's revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.45 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Rockwell Automation's payout ratio is currently 57.38%.

About Rockwell Automation

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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