Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Natixis Investment Managers International

Natixis Investment Managers International reduced its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 11.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 303 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 38 shares during the quarter. Natixis Investment Managers International’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $88,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ROK. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,048,986 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,092,891,000 after acquiring an additional 438,356 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 82.4% during the 1st quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 859,717 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $250,461,000 after acquiring an additional 388,400 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 33,600.1% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 295,213 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $91,658,000 after acquiring an additional 294,337 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2,932.2% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 246,217 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $76,445,000 after acquiring an additional 238,097 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth about $64,635,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK stock traded up $7.80 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $270.87. 1,222,413 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 978,806. The company has a market cap of $30.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 1.37. The company’s 50 day moving average is $265.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $277.21. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $249.00 and a 1 year high of $339.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.05 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.83% and a net margin of 13.19%. The company’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.01 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 12th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.88%.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 659 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.11, for a total transaction of $171,412.49. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,630 shares in the company, valued at $1,204,309.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 659 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.11, for a total value of $171,412.49. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,204,309.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 297 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.38, for a total value of $76,144.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,833 shares in the company, valued at $469,944.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,199 shares of company stock worth $572,750 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho decreased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $312.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $310.00 to $304.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $290.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $322.00 to $316.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $300.71.

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.