SG Americas Securities LLC Acquires 2,655 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 104.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,190 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,655 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,341,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,876,530 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,965,774,000 after acquiring an additional 81,079 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,115,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,033,476,000 after acquiring an additional 432,934 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,734,430 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $779,426,000 after acquiring an additional 51,228 shares during the period. Amundi grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $580,095,000 after acquiring an additional 430,498 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,570,036 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $448,701,000 after acquiring an additional 13,744 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $323.83 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $281.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $279.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.33, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.38. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.00 and a 12-month high of $328.90.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.97 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. The business's revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ROK. Barclays raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $283.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, May 30th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $360.00 target price (up previously from $345.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $327.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $317.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.13, for a total value of $760,325.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,033 shares of the company's stock, valued at $314,166.29. This represents a 70.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 297 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.31, for a total transaction of $96,914.07. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,691 shares in the company, valued at $551,790.21. This trade represents a 14.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,681 shares of company stock valued at $2,382,987 in the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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