Victory Capital Management Inc. Raises Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 56,876 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,276 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $17,659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Rockwell Automation by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,915 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $595,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 1,168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 24.2% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Cottage Street Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Cottage Street Advisors LLC now owns 1,038 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $319,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, XML Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.7% during the third quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $443,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Berenberg Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective (down from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Barclays reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $310.00 to $304.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $324.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $312.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $307.93.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

ROK stock opened at $270.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $31.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.43. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $252.11 and a 1 year high of $348.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $281.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $283.04.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.22% and a net margin of 13.35%. Rockwell Automation’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.01 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.57%.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $145,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $691,070. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Rockwell Automation news, CEO Blake D. Moret purchased 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $283.64 per share, with a total value of $992,740.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,215 shares in the company, valued at $21,901,262.60. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.00, for a total transaction of $145,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $691,070. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,240 shares of company stock worth $4,891,324. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

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.