Equitable Trust Co. Has $9.68 Million Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Equitable Trust Co. trimmed its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 23.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,038 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 11,214 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $9,675,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 33.2% during the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. Vicus Capital acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at approximately $304,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 186.9% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,292,000 after buying an additional 9,596 shares during the period. Comerica Bank lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 6.1% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 60,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,485,000 after buying an additional 3,425 shares during the period. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,817,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $284.21.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 1.8 %

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $272.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $30.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 1.36. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $242.81 and a 1-year high of $312.76. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $266.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $266.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 34.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.64 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.93%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is currently 56.82%.

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

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.