Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 893 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. by 2.6%, now owning approximately $8.81 million worth of shares.
• Rockwell Automation's recent quarterly earnings exceeded expectations, reporting $2.82 EPS against a consensus estimate of $2.67 and a revenue of $2.14 billion versus an estimated $2.07 billion.
• Bank of America upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" to a "buy" rating, raising the target price from $360 to $410.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 2.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,097 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 893 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.'s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $8,813,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROK. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 29,844.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 702,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $181,588,000 after acquiring an additional 700,447 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 432,934 shares during the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 56.9% in the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 935,726 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $267,421,000 after acquiring an additional 339,480 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 289.6% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 416,893 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $119,144,000 after acquiring an additional 309,893 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth $63,632,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ROK shares. Wall Street Zen raised Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $345.00 price target on Rockwell Automation and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Bank of America raised Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $360.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.16.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 363 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.32, for a total value of $118,454.16. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 4,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,325,838.16. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 500 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.02, for a total value of $160,010.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,709 shares in the company, valued at $866,934.18. This trade represents a 15.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,818 shares of company stock valued at $1,944,708. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

ROK stock traded up $11.2350 during trading on Friday, reaching $350.7550. The stock had a trading volume of 663,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,079,796. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $215.00 and a 52 week high of $360.92. The stock's 50 day moving average is $341.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $298.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $39.44 billion, a PE ratio of 41.17, a PEG ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.39.

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

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

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

Rockwell Automation 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.