Weil Company Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Weil Company Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 27.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,780 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,916 shares during the period. Weil Company Inc.'s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $2,269,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 8.5% in 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 last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,063 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,652 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,462,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at about $281,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 14.9% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 14,478 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,135,000 after buying an additional 1,872 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on ROK. CICC Research began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $381.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Citigroup raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $327.00 to $371.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Barclays raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $275.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $332.00.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.02, for a total value of $160,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at $866,934.18. This trade represents a 15.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 939 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.24, for a total value of $285,681.36. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 983 shares of the company's stock, valued at $299,067.92. The trade was a 48.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,388 shares of company stock valued at $2,307,487. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Rockwell Automation stock traded down $1.81 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $343.14. 516,535 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 864,992. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.68 billion, a PE ratio of 43.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.00 and a 12-month high of $348.43. The business's 50-day moving average is $317.25 and its 200-day moving average is $285.11.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.97 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.16% and a net margin of 11.38%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.99%.

Rockwell Automation Company 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.