Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Has $5.53 Million Stock Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 21.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,618 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $5,533,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at $2,003,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew 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 buying an additional 9,596 shares during the period. Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 60,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,485,000 after buying an additional 3,425 shares during the period. Mairs & Power Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. now owns 384,684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $119,437,000 after buying an additional 9,132 shares during the period. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at $2,817,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $266.28 on Thursday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76. The stock has a market cap of $30.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.03, a P/E/G ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The business’s 50 day moving average is $263.27 and its 200-day moving average is $268.82.

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

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $304.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $256.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $282.80.

Rockwell Automation Company 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.