Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: 21 analysts give Rockwell Automation a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" (11 holds, 9 buys, 1 strong buy) with an average 1‑year price target of $406.67.
• Quarterly beat and outlook: Rockwell reported $2.75 EPS vs. $2.46 expected and $2.11B revenue (up 11.9% YoY), and set FY2026 guidance of $11.40–$12.20 EPS.
• Insider selling: Company insiders have sold 51,375 shares worth about $20.8 million over the past 90 days (insiders now own 0.76% of the stock), including large sales by two senior VPs.

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-one analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $406.6667.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ROK. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $435.00 to $410.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $410.00 to $360.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research lowered Rockwell Automation from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $400.00 to $404.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Christopher Nardecchia sold 14,465 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.01, for a total value of $5,930,794.65. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 14,232 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,835,262.32. The trade was a 50.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,985 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.37, for a total transaction of $812,599.45. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,652,217.32. This represents a 32.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 51,375 shares of company stock valued at $20,828,717. Insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 61,834 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $21,613,000 after purchasing an additional 4,086 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth $1,556,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 180.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 5,842 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,042,000 after purchasing an additional 3,759 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 744,814 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $291,073,000 after buying an additional 127,733 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maridea Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 580.0% during the fourth quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,522 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,148,000 after buying an additional 4,710 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $405.21 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $45.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.54. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $382.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $384.72. Rockwell Automation has a 52-week low of $222.06 and a 52-week high of $438.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.08 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.92% and a net margin of 11.56%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.400-12.200 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd were issued a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. Rockwell Automation's payout ratio is 63.16%.

About Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company's product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.

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