Chelsea Counsel Co. Cuts Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Chelsea Counsel Co. reduced its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 44.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 922 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 750 shares during the period. Chelsea Counsel Co.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $248,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Rockwell Automation during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Cultivar Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 2nd quarter worth about $46,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,327,482.45. The trade was a 25.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,541 shares of company stock valued at $10,586,674 over the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on ROK. Barclays upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Oppenheimer lifted 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. Mizuho increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective 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. Finally, HSBC raised 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 note on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $301.17.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $297.49 on Thursday. 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $278.85 and its 200 day moving average is $269.30. The stock has a market cap of $33.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.36. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $242.81 and a 52-week high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released 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. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. 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.