Bank of America Boosts Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Price Target to $285.00

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) had its price target lifted by Bank of America from $270.00 to $285.00 in a research report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Three 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.47.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE:ROK opened at $272.82 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $31.10 billion, a PE ratio of 26.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $264.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $267.50. Rockwell Automation has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month 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 EPS 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.01 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation’s revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation will post 9.67 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 12.4% during the third quarter. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI now owns 19,276 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,175,000 after buying an additional 2,122 shares during the last quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 23.1% during the third quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA now owns 1,600 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 112,624 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,235,000 after acquiring an additional 2,247 shares during the last quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 33,612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,023,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 89.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $205,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.