Savant Capital LLC Raises Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Savant Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 119.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,631 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,613 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,895,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $308.05.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total transaction of $7,973,421.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,115 shares in the company, valued at $23,327,482.45. The trade was a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total transaction of $132,660.69. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,363,536. This represents a 8.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,857 shares of company stock worth $10,678,037. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE:ROK opened at $298.51 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $308.70. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $286.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $275.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market capitalization of $33.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.05, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.35.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation 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.