Beaumont Asset Management L.L.C. Trims Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Beaumont Asset Management L.L.C. decreased its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,376 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 94 shares during the period. Rockwell Automation accounts for 0.7% of Beaumont Asset Management L.L.C.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Beaumont Asset Management L.L.C.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,251,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in 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. West Oak Capital LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROK. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $313.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target for the company. Mizuho raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $304.16.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director James P. Keane sold 2,000 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.00, for a total transaction of $592,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,409,328. The trade was a 14.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. This represents a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 35,857 shares of company stock valued at $10,678,037. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.2 %

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $268.27 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $286.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.01. The company has a market capitalization of $30.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.35. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $304.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.32 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 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.