Bank of Jackson Hole Trust Acquires New Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ROK. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 25,927 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,960,000 after buying an additional 807 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 89.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $205,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $266,000. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $547,000. Finally, Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 77.2% during the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,422 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,456,000 after buying an additional 2,363 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

ROK opened at $302.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $242.81 and a 52-week high of $308.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.25 billion, a PE ratio of 37.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $286.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $276.66.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.26%.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total transaction of $83,967.12. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,184 shares in the company, valued at $961,695.36. The trade was a 8.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total value of $255,178.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,633 shares in the company, valued at $490,242.93. This trade represents a 34.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 36,240 shares of company stock worth $10,800,555 over the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ROK shares. UBS Group assumed coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. HSBC raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $308.05.

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.