Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Sigma Planning Corp

Sigma Planning Corp reduced its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 62.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,771 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,904 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $550,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Robbins Farley lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 18.1% during the 4th quarter. Robbins Farley now owns 4,754 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,476,000 after purchasing an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 707 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 101,777 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,600,000 after acquiring an additional 22,757 shares during the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 32,038 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,947,000 after acquiring an additional 5,128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One North America Inc. lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 50.4% in the fourth quarter. Ninety One North America Inc. now owns 22,391 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,952,000 after acquiring an additional 7,499 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $276.93 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $252.11 and a 52-week high of $348.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $282.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $283.84. The firm has a market cap of $31.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.43.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.62 by ($0.58). Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.22% and a net margin of 13.35%. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.57%.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total transaction of $167,448.19. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,088 shares in the company, valued at $1,337,482.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total transaction of $167,448.19. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,088 shares in the company, valued at $1,337,482.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.52, for a total transaction of $140,260.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,383 shares in the company, valued at $1,229,519.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 17,877 shares of company stock worth $5,058,772 over the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ROK shares. UBS Group raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $305.00 to $360.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $324.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $254.00 price target on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Berenberg Bank reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $290.00 price target (down from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $310.08.

Rockwell Automation Company 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.