Parnassus Investments LLC Invests $17.85 Million in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Parnassus Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 62,471 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,854,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,648,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,247,839,000 after buying an additional 11,949 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,683,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $717,865,000 after acquiring an additional 14,040 shares during the period. Amundi increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 26.2% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $580,095,000 after purchasing an additional 430,498 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,570,036 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $448,701,000 after purchasing an additional 13,744 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 6.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,128,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $303,041,000 after purchasing an additional 67,684 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.14, for a total transaction of $145,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $552,716.70. This represents a 20.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total transaction of $245,874.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $329,114.56. This trade represents a 42.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,352 shares of company stock valued at $1,246,298. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 2.5 %

ROK opened at $255.30 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $308.70. The business has a 50-day moving average of $282.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $278.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. On average, research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 65.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.68.

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.