Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy Rating

Key Points

• Rockwell Automation was upgraded from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating by analysts at Wall Street Zen, indicating growing investor confidence in the company's stock.
• Recent research notes from various analysts show increasing target prices, with Citigroup raising its price objective to $392, signaling positive sentiment regarding the company's performance.
• In terms of financial results, Rockwell Automation reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $2.82 for the last quarter, exceeding expectations and reflecting a revenue increase of 4.5% year-over-year.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Sunday morning.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $360.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $345.00 price objective on Rockwell Automation and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $375.00 price target (up previously from $350.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. CICC Research started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $381.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $392.00 price target (up previously from $371.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Monday, July 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $340.16.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

NYSE ROK traded down $2.42 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $345.40. The company had a trading volume of 772,975 shares, compared to its average volume of 926,785. Rockwell Automation has a 52 week low of $215.00 and a 52 week high of $360.92. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $346.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $306.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.54, a PEG ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 1.41.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.15. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.14% and a net margin of 12.03%.The business had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Isaac Woods sold 250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $87,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $581,700. The trade was a 13.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 269 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.26, for a total value of $95,564.94. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at $573,034.38. The trade was a 14.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 31,922 shares of company stock valued at $11,191,812. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ROK. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.5% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,058,406 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,669,781,000 after acquiring an additional 207,448 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 1.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,874,428 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $950,744,000 after buying an additional 48,105 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 191,370 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,579,956 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $408,229,000 after purchasing an additional 9,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.2% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,448,160 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $374,176,000 after purchasing an additional 30,837 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company's stock.

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.