Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 5.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 645,485 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 35,070 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.56% of Rockwell Automation worth $200,410,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ROK. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth about $493,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 74.0% in the 3rd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,413 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $404,000 after buying an additional 601 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,976,000. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,807,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 840.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 884 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $253,000 after buying an additional 790 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Rebecca W. House sold 13,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.02, for a total transaction of $3,933,978.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,482 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,400,575.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, SVP Rebecca W. House sold 13,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.02, for a total value of $3,933,978.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,482 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,400,575.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret acquired 3,500 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $283.64 per share, with a total value of $992,740.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 77,215 shares in the company, valued at $21,901,262.60. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 17,240 shares of company stock valued at $4,891,324 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock traded up $4.32 during trading on Friday, reaching $273.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,145,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,030,347. The business's 50-day moving average price is $281.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $283.04. The firm has a market cap of $31.35 billion, a PE ratio of 25.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.43. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $252.11 and a 52 week high of $348.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.35. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 13.35% and a return on equity of 37.22%. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.01 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation's revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is 47.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ROK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $254.00 price target on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Citigroup cut their target price on Rockwell Automation from $322.00 to $316.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Berenberg Bank restated a "hold" rating and issued a $290.00 target price (down from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Rockwell Automation from $310.00 to $304.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $307.93.

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.