Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Sells 2,157 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC cut its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,642 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,157 shares during the quarter. Rockwell Automation makes up approximately 1.6% of Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC owned about 0.05% of Rockwell Automation worth $19,449,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Imprint Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 32,845.0% during the second quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 1,254,546 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $125,455,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250,738 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 87,404.1% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,236,433 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,468,000 after acquiring an additional 1,235,020 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at $215,125,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,741,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $706,004,000 after purchasing an additional 457,383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 13.8% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,638,992 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $774,411,000 after purchasing an additional 320,524 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total value of $167,448.19. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,088 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,337,482.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total value of $167,448.19. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,088 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,337,482.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.52, for a total transaction of $140,260.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,229,519.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,877 shares of company stock worth $5,058,772. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on ROK. Citigroup dropped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $351.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Berenberg Bank reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $290.00 target price (down from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $324.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating and set a $254.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $308.36.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $291.33 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $284.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $284.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.72, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.43. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $252.11 and a 52-week high of $348.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.62 by ($0.58). The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.08 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.22% and a net margin of 13.35%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.46 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 12.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is presently 47.57%.

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.