Apollon Wealth Management LLC Sells 222 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,078 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 222 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $826,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $286.15 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $268.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $266.83. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.64 EPS. Research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has approved 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 target price for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $286.13.

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.