Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC Sells 65 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC cut its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,516 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 65 shares during the period. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $407,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at $645,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 511.2% during the third quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV now owns 1,528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $410,000 after buying an additional 1,278 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 4,197.9% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 2,020 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $579,000 after buying an additional 1,973 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.0% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 34,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,184,000 after acquiring an additional 1,928 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 141.9% in the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 8,526 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,289,000 after acquiring an additional 5,002 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of Rockwell Automation 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. The trade was a 25.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total value of $154,511.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,070 shares of company stock valued at $10,142,408. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $298.68 on Tuesday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $312.76. 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 market capitalization of $33.72 billion, a PE ratio of 36.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.36. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $278.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $269.09.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.64 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. UBS Group began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 target price for the company. Bank of America upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. Two equities research 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, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.