Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 476 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 1.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 49,003 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 476 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $13,155,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Accredited Investors Inc. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 162,058.5% during the 3rd quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 1,185,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,227,000 after buying an additional 1,184,648 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $510,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Hemenway Trust Co LLC increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hemenway Trust Co LLC now owns 107,791 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,938,000 after acquiring an additional 1,238 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 986,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $264,929,000 after acquiring an additional 41,605 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $912,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In other news, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total value of $132,660.69. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,363,536. The trade was a 8.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction 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 $1,221,151.36. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $280.08 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $270.42 and a 200 day moving average of $267.03.

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

Rockwell Automation declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.87%. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 60.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on ROK shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Mizuho lifted their price target 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, TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.13.

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.