Terry L. Riesterer Sells 2,100 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Stock

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.08, for a total transaction of $735,168.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,033 shares in the company, valued at $361,632.64. This trade represents a 67.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 1.5%

ROK stock traded up $5.15 during trading on Thursday, reaching $356.82. The company had a trading volume of 680,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 866,083. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $215.00 and a 52 week high of $357.58. The company has a market cap of $40.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.94, a PEG ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a 50 day moving average of $322.29 and a 200 day moving average of $286.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 business 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 company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.99%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,192 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 45,058 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $14,967,000 after purchasing an additional 2,977 shares during the period. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the second quarter worth $202,000. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 10.3% during the 2nd quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,988 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $992,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GC Wealth Management RIA LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $336,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $392.00 target price (up previously from $371.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday. Bank of America raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $360.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday. BNP Paribas upgraded Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $304.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $341.11.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.