International Assets Investment Management LLC Sells 932,730 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

International Assets Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 99.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,448 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 932,730 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $969,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Choreo LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 114.1% in the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 4,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,162,000 after purchasing an additional 2,334 shares during the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the second quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 45,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $12,562,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 14.1% during the second quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $841,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 20.7% in the second quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 122,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,653,000 after acquiring an additional 20,994 shares during the period. Finally, Linscomb Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 11.9% in the 2nd quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 971 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $267,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ROK shares. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup raised their price target on Rockwell Automation from $313.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Barclays cut their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $300.89.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 1,121 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.01, for a total value of $338,553.21. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 81,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,690,525.54. This trade represents a 1.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total transaction of $83,967.12. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $961,695.36. This represents a 8.03 % 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 90 days. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE ROK opened at $279.44 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $307.71. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $287.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $31.59 billion, a PE ratio of 33.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business 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. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation 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.