Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI Purchases 2,048 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation, acquiring an additional 2,048 shares, bringing their total ownership to 21,310 shares, valued at approximately $7.08 million.
• CEO Blake D. Moret sold 24,400 shares of Rockwell Automation stock, which represented a 22.54% decrease in his position, while Director James P. Keane sold 3,000 shares with a 24.61% decrease in ownership.
• Rockwell Automation received positive analyst upgrades, with Wall Street Zen raising its rating from "hold" to "buy" and Bank of America raising its target price from $360 to $410.

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI lifted its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 10.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,310 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 2,048 shares during the period. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $7,079,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ROK. Citizens National Bank Trust Department bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 24,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.13, for a total value of $8,543,172.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 83,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,366,453.49. This trade represents a 22.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director James P. Keane sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.06, for a total transaction of $1,068,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 9,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,272,903.52. This trade represents a 24.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 29,553 shares of company stock valued at $10,361,079. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 21st. Bank of America raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $360.00 to $410.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $381.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $347.94.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 1.1%

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $350.22 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $345.33 and a 200-day moving average of $319.55. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $215.00 and a one year high of $360.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $39.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.41.

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

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.

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