Barclays Lowers Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Price Target to $285.00

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) had its target price decreased by equities researchers at Barclays from $290.00 to $285.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Barclays‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 1.99% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on ROK. HSBC upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $300.89.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $279.44 on Wednesday. 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 has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $307.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $287.39 and a 200-day moving average of $273.82.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.64 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total transaction of $7,973,421.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 78,115 shares in the company, valued at $23,327,482.45. The trade was a 25.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was 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 owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,541 shares of company stock valued at $10,586,674 in the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% during the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184,648 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 29,591.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 936,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $251,326,000 after purchasing an additional 933,025 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 33.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,556,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $417,802,000 after buying an additional 390,784 shares during the last quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 484.5% in the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 412,371 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $104,779,000 after buying an additional 341,814 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Interval Partners LP increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 479,608.6% during the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 335,656 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $92,399,000 after acquiring an additional 335,726 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.