Robert W. Baird Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Stock

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at Robert W. Baird from $305.00 to $315.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 4.30% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 target price for the company. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America raised 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $308.05.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK stock opened at $302.01 on Tuesday. Rockwell Automation has a one year low of $242.81 and a one year high of $308.70. The company has a market cap of $34.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $286.07 and a 200-day moving average of $275.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. Equities research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation will post 9.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rockwell Automation news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total value of $7,973,421.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 78,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. This represents a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director James P. Keane sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.00, for a total value of $592,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,409,328. This represents a 14.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,857 shares of company stock valued at $10,678,037 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Rockwell Automation

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ROK. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 33.2% during the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 95.8% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,332 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,141 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 99.1% in the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 2,582 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the third quarter worth $912,000. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.0% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 34,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,184,000 after buying an additional 1,928 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Rockwell Automation

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.