Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Position Lifted by NewEdge Advisors LLC

NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,882 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $5,473,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norden Group LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,003,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 186.9% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,292,000 after acquiring an additional 9,596 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 60,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,485,000 after acquiring an additional 3,425 shares in the last quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. now owns 384,684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $119,437,000 after purchasing an additional 9,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth $2,817,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $265.26 on Wednesday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $242.81 and a 1 year high of $312.76. The firm has a market cap of $30.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $263.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $268.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.63. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.09% and a net margin of 11.56%. The business had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.01 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on ROK shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $293.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $304.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Rockwell Automation from $295.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays cut their price target on Rockwell Automation from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $282.80.

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.