Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp Has $13.67 Million Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp cut its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,839 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,470 shares during the period. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $13,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ROK. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 3,775 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,079,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,896 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $542,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 4,195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. now owns 1,082 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $285.00 to $280.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Rockwell Automation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In other news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.14, for a total value of $145,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,905 shares in the company, valued at $552,716.70. This represents a 20.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total transaction of $351,364.33. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,650 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,819.50. The trade was a 25.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,352 shares of company stock worth $1,246,298. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 5.0 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $227.25 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.70 billion, a PE ratio of 28.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $214.89 and a 52 week high of $308.70. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $274.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $278.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 65.26%.

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.