Clearstead Trust LLC Takes Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Clearstead Trust LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 1,526 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $436,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,141 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 99.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 2,582 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at $912,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 6.0% during the 3rd 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 period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 462,537 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $132,554,000 after buying an additional 25,882 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of ROK stock opened at $260.09 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $308.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $282.10 and its 200 day moving average is $278.59. The company has a market cap of $29.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.39, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. Research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ROK. BNP Paribas lowered Rockwell Automation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. HSBC upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. 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 report on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price 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, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.68.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 1,633 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $490,242.93. This trade represents a 34.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.14, for a total value of $145,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $552,716.70. This represents a 20.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,352 shares of company stock valued at $1,246,298 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.