Virtu Financial LLC Makes New Investment in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 11,146 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,337,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 97.5% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 79 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 109.5% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 88 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $474.16 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $305.44 and a 12 month high of $475.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $52.76 billion, a PE ratio of 49.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.57. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $436.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $409.13.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.54% and a net margin of 12.36%.Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.45 earnings per share. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 9th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 57.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP John M. Miller sold 1,054 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $426.02, for a total value of $449,025.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 5,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,392,102.30. This represents a 15.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $480,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,774,800. This trade represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 12,308 shares of company stock worth $5,339,812 over the last ninety days. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ROK shares. DA Davidson began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $495.00 to $515.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $466.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $525.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price target (down from $490.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $454.05.

Rockwell Automation Profile

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company’s product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.