Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC Invests $4.63 Million in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 16,203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,631,000. Rockwell Automation accounts for 1.1% of Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MCF Advisors LLC increased its stake 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 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 valued at $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 2,582 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of 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 worth $9,184,000 after buying an additional 1,928 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 462,537 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $132,554,000 after buying an additional 25,882 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Rockwell Automation by 7.3% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $212,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 3.7 %

ROK stock opened at $258.22 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $29.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.16, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $278.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $278.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $308.70.

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

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.26%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.14, for a total value of $145,070.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $552,716.70. This trade represents a 20.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total transaction of $255,178.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,633 shares of the company’s stock, 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 a total of 4,352 shares of company stock valued at $1,246,298 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. KeyCorp raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. HSBC upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Stephens upgraded Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $307.42.

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.