Banco Santander S.A. Acquires 2,345 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Banco Santander S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 5.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,333 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 2,345 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $12,439,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ROK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In related news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total value of $154,511.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total transaction of $132,660.69. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,363,536. This trade represents a 8.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $278.90 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $270.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $267.03. 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 $31.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.64 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.