Northern Trust Corp Raises Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,391,331 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 171,604 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.23% of Rockwell Automation worth $397,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. West Oak Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% during the fourth quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Loop Capital raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $297.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at $495,260.96. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total transaction of $351,364.33. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 3,650 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,041,819.50. This trade represents a 25.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,075,923 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK stock traded up $4.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $253.48. 940,616 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 871,544. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $252.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $273.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.00 and a 12-month high of $308.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. On average, analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.