Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Stake Raised by Ameriprise Financial Inc.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 9.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 184,981 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,564 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Rockwell Automation worth $52,864,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $284,177,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 85,513.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 675,487 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $193,047,000 after acquiring an additional 674,698 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 102.3% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,287,731 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $368,021,000 after acquiring an additional 651,116 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,115,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,033,476,000 after purchasing an additional 432,934 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $580,095,000 after purchasing an additional 430,498 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight 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 stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $308.37.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 1.2 %

ROK stock opened at $294.88 on Friday. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $251.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $273.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $33.34 billion, a PE ratio of 36.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $308.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. Rockwell Automation's revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.50 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is 65.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In related news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total value of $351,364.33. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 3,650 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,041,819.50. The trade was a 25.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total value of $248,810.28. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at $300,219.71. This represents a 45.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,250 shares of company stock valued at $1,223,428. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Rockwell Automation

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.

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