4,784 Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK Shares Acquired by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 408.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,955 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,784 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $2,592,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 130.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 17,010 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,405,000 after purchasing an additional 9,625 shares in the last quarter. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 24.1% during the 3rd quarter. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. now owns 196 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 5,405 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,353,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 14.1% during the third quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 4,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,898,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moneco Advisors LLC raised its stake in Rockwell Automation by 1.4% during the third quarter. Moneco Advisors LLC now owns 2,991 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,302,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Christian E. Rothe sold 590 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.30, for a total transaction of $256,237.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,429 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,529,314.70. This represents a 5.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.14, for a total value of $168,056.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $364,261.38. The trade was a 31.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,211 shares of company stock worth $1,366,185. 0.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Recent Rockwell Automation Headlines

Here are a few of the latest headlines about ROK:

• Positive Sentiment: Rockwell introduced LogixEdge, an industrial PC-based controller combining Logix control, edge computing and containerized applications. The platform is designed to simplify factory systems and support software-defined automation, creating a new product opportunity, though financial impact is not yet known. Article: Rockwell Automation Introduces LogixEdge Controllers
• Neutral Sentiment: Vice President Isaac Woods sold 500 shares for about $201,000 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. He retained 1,358 shares; the planned nature of the transaction makes it a limited signal about his current outlook. SEC Form 4 filing
• Negative Sentiment: ETFs were reported as net sellers of ROK shares on Nov. 11. This may add some flow-related pressure, although ETF activity alone does not indicate a change in the company’s fundamentals. Article: ETFs Are Net Sellers of Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:ROK traded down $1.67 during trading on Friday, reaching $402.53. 913,260 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,074,089. The stock has a market cap of $44.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $426.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $426.80. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $347.53 and a 52-week high of $497.36.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.19. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 41.79%. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.500-15.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be issued a $1.45 dividend. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is 43.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $510.00 to $485.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Rockwell Automation from $501.00 to $514.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Rockwell Automation from $536.00 to $504.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 6th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Rockwell Automation from $500.00 to $490.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $445.00 to $430.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $471.33.

About Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation, Inc. is an industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its roots date to 1903, when it was founded as the Compression Rheostat Company. The company provides hardware, software and services that help manufacturers automate and manage industrial operations. Its offerings include control systems, sensors, motor-control products, industrial software and services for optimizing production and maintaining equipment. Its Allen-Bradley and FactoryTalk brands are among its best-known product lines.