The Goldman Sachs Group Has Lowered Expectations for Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Stock Price

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) had its price objective dropped by research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $510.00 to $485.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 12.43% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on ROK. Argus increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $465.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $500.00 to $490.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Evercore set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $555.00 to $536.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $469.82.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 0.0%

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $431.37 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $438.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $432.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Rockwell Automation has a 1-year low of $332.71 and a 1-year high of $497.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.52.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.38 by $0.11. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 39.83% and a net margin of 13.39%.The firm had revenue of $2.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.82 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-13.300 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Rockwell Automation will post 13.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, June 9th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Christian E. Rothe sold 590 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.30, for a total transaction of $256,237.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 10,429 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,529,314.70. This trade represents a 5.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Patricia A. Watson sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.43, for a total value of $474,573.00. Following the sale, the director owned 6,385 shares in the company, valued at $2,754,680.55. The trade was a 14.70% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 2,711 shares of company stock worth $1,164,880 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ROK. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,968 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,964,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 5.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,323,990 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,635,801,000 after buying an additional 265,978 shares during the period. Security National Bank of SO Dak bought a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the second quarter valued at about $102,000. Bullseye Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the second quarter worth about $120,000. Finally, Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 2nd quarter valued at about $237,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

Rockwell Automation, Inc is a global provider of industrial automation and digital transformation technologies. The company helps manufacturers and other industrial organizations improve productivity, quality, safety, and operational efficiency by connecting industrial equipment, control systems, software, and data.

Its offerings include programmable logic controllers, industrial computers, motor control and drives, sensors, safety systems, human-machine interfaces, and other control and electrical products.