Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. Has $1.90 Million Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 3.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,066 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 235 shares during the period. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,897,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the second quarter worth $36,000. Webster Bank N. A. acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation during the first quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Cultivar Capital Inc. bought a new position in Rockwell Automation during the second quarter valued at about $46,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ROK. Mizuho upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $304.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $286.47.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ROK traded up $2.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $269.86. The company had a trading volume of 380,817 shares, compared to its average volume of 873,659. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.81 and a 12 month high of $312.76. The firm has a market cap of $30.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.38, a PEG ratio of 4.68 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $265.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $267.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.63. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.09% and a net margin of 11.56%. Rockwell Automation’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.01 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.