Versor Investments LP Invests $409,000 in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Versor Investments LP bought a new position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,525 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $409,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ROK. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $285.13.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of ROK opened at $286.43 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $267.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $266.69. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $312.76. The stock has a market cap of $32.50 billion, a PE ratio of 34.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.64 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 63.29%.

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.