Capital Investment Counsel Inc Takes Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Capital Investment Counsel Inc purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $338,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 33,600.1% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 295,213 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $91,658,000 after buying an additional 294,337 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,908,119 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $545,474,000 after acquiring an additional 172,577 shares during the last quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,275,000. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 35.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 484,438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $139,247,000 after purchasing an additional 127,303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1,294.7% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 127,891 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,560,000 after purchasing an additional 118,721 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.1 %

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $279.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.25. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $282.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $283.46. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $252.11 and a fifty-two week high of $348.52. The company has a market capitalization of $32.08 billion, a PE ratio of 26.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.43.

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

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $305.00 to $360.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $269.00 to $265.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Berenberg Bank reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $290.00 price target (down previously from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $310.08.

Insider Activity

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total value of $167,448.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,088 shares in the company, valued at $1,337,482.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total value of $167,448.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,088 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,337,482.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret bought 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $283.64 per share, for a total transaction of $992,740.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,901,262.60. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,877 shares of company stock valued at $5,058,772. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.