Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Holdings Increased by Wellington Management Group LLP

Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 7.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $212,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ROK. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth approximately $996,000. Wahed Invest LLC raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 2,782 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $747,000 after buying an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter worth $307,000. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,648,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,247,839,000 after buying an additional 11,949 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 66.0% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 2,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $574,000 after buying an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of ROK stock opened at $289.79 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $312.76. The company has a market cap of $32.72 billion, a PE ratio of 35.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business’s 50 day moving average is $283.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $271.23.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during 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%. Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.37 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America raised 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. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $313.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Mizuho increased 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $301.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, 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 approximately $1,363,536. The trade was a 8.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total transaction of $83,967.12. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $961,695.36. The trade was a 8.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 35,541 shares of company stock valued at $10,586,674. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.