B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Makes New $4.97 Million Investment in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 18,497 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,966,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 85.6% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 12,190 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,547,000 after purchasing an additional 5,623 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 8.5% in the first quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 49,695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,482,000 after buying an additional 3,876 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 25.7% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 10.2% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,036 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,050,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 18.7% in the first quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,329 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on ROK shares. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. UBS Group started coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target for the company. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the 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 directly owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 1.8 %

ROK stock opened at $278.08 on Wednesday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76. The business’s 50-day moving average is $269.96 and its 200 day moving average is $266.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $31.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.58, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. 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 buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.