Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Sets New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after Bank of America raised their price target on the stock from $330.00 to $360.00. Bank of America currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Rockwell Automation traded as high as $343.29 and last traded at $342.68, with a volume of 784227 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $338.61.

ROK has been the subject of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $327.00 to $371.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays upgraded Rockwell Automation from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $283.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $324.37.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 363 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.32, for a total value of $118,454.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 4,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,325,838.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $866,934.18. This trade represents a 15.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,388 shares of company stock valued at $2,307,487 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,876,530 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,965,774,000 after acquiring an additional 81,079 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.5% during the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 432,934 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,734,430 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $779,426,000 after purchasing an additional 51,228 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 26.2% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $580,095,000 after purchasing an additional 430,498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,819,379 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $470,091,000 after purchasing an additional 191,370 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 1.2%

The company has a 50-day moving average of $306.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $282.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $39.11 billion, a PE ratio of 43.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.99%.

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.