Janus Henderson Group PLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Janus Henderson Group PLC cut its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 1.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 14,619 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $3,925,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 4,033 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Pure Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.7% in the second quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 2.2% in the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 1,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $518,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 990 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 9258 Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,501 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $413,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 1.7 %

NYSE:ROK opened at $293.72 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $278.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $269.09. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $312.76. The company has a market capitalization of $33.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.47, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted 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 business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.64 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total value of $83,967.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $961,695.36. This trade represents a 8.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,541 shares of company stock worth $10,586,674. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target for the company. KeyCorp upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $294.75.

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.