UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC Grows Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management has increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 1.0%, now owning 1,170,010 shares valued at approximately $302 million.
• Several other institutional investors, including Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG and Allspring Global Investments, also increased their stakes in Rockwell Automation this quarter, indicating strong institutional interest.
• Analyst ratings for Rockwell Automation are generally positive, with a consensus of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.16.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 1.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,170,010 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,849 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned approximately 1.04% of Rockwell Automation worth $302,307,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $375.00 price objective (up previously from $350.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $371.00 to $363.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $392.00 price target (up previously from $371.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.16.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 1,435 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.08, for a total transaction of $499,494.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 3,787 shares in the company, valued at $1,318,178.96. This represents a 27.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 365 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.44, for a total transaction of $127,180.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 1,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $589,212.04. This trade represents a 17.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,922 shares of company stock worth $11,191,812 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 1.6%

ROK stock traded down $5.57 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $344.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 545,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 762,274. The firm's 50-day moving average is $345.69 and its 200-day moving average is $303.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $215.00 and a 12 month high of $360.92. The company has a market cap of $38.79 billion, a PE ratio of 40.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 1.41.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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. The business 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 quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast 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.