Clarius Group LLC Cuts Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Clarius Group LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 2.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,276 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 38 shares during the quarter. Clarius Group LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ROK. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 951.4% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,532,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,611,915,000 after buying an additional 5,006,706 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 1,119.3% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 763,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $210,135,000 after purchasing an additional 700,745 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,048,986 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,092,891,000 after purchasing an additional 438,356 shares during the period. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the first quarter worth about $118,345,000. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 82.4% during the 1st quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 859,717 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $250,461,000 after purchasing an additional 388,400 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $271.16 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $262.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $268.07. The stock has a market cap of $30.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.68. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.67 EPS for the current year.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on ROK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $304.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $283.60.

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.