Caprock Group LLC Reduces Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Caprock Group LLC cut its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 21.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,917 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 795 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $783,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 33.2% during the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Vicus Capital purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $304,000. Comerica Bank lifted its stake 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 worth $17,485,000 after purchasing an additional 3,425 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the third quarter worth approximately $912,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth approximately $2,817,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $278.13 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $31.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $270.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $267.11. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $242.81 and a fifty-two week high of $312.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side 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 authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 63.29%.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total transaction of $132,660.69. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,363,536. This represents a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on ROK. 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, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. BNP Paribas began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Three 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.