Wedbush Securities Inc. Has $694,000 Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Wedbush Securities Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 43.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,922 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $694,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Security National Bank bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Cooksen Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROK has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $256.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $293.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $282.80.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $256.85 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $266.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $271.11. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $242.81 and a 1 year high of $312.76. The company has a market capitalization of $29.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.11, a P/E/G ratio of 4.55 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.63. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.09% and a net margin of 11.56%. The business had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.01 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.66 EPS for the current year.

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

Rockwell Automation 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.