Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Now Covered by BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating and a $345.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock.

ROK has been the topic of several other reports. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.13.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.1 %

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $286.15 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $269.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $266.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $32.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.36. Rockwell Automation has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.64 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Rockwell Automation will post 9.54 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors 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 yield of 1.83%. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.39%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was 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 owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth about $26,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

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.