Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $431.59 and last traded at $429.7060, with a volume of 785 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $429.15.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $439.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $400.00 to $404.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $410.12.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 7.5%

The firm has a market cap of $44.64 billion, a PE ratio of 51.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.52. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $406.96 and its 200-day moving average is $371.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 10.42%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.400-12.200 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $392.00, for a total transaction of $313,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $483,728. This represents a 39.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.05, for a total transaction of $323,248.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 5,858 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,355,208.90. The trade was a 12.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 25,531 shares of company stock worth $10,259,637 over the last three months. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 468.8% during the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 91 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Rexford Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the second quarter worth $33,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 109.5% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 88 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company’s product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.