Citigroup Inc. Cuts Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Citigroup Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 24.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 177,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 55,978 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $61,898,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ROK. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 468.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 91 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Rexford Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the second quarter worth about $33,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 48.7% during the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 900.0% in the third quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE:ROK opened at $386.85 on Tuesday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $215.00 and a 12 month high of $438.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.47 billion, a PE ratio of 44.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.52. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $406.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $376.66.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.29. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.92% and a net margin of 11.56%.The company had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.83 EPS. Rockwell Automation’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.400-12.200 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be paid a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Scott Genereux sold 1,387 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.03, for a total transaction of $557,615.61. Following the sale, the vice president owned 4,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,814,763.42. This trade represents a 23.50% 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. Also, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 5,564 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.02, for a total transaction of $2,236,839.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 94,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,025,061.70. The trade was a 5.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 25,531 shares of company stock valued at $10,259,637 over the last three months. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROK has been the topic of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $329.00 to $448.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Stephens upped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $425.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Evercore initiated coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Monday, December 15th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $440.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Argus raised Rockwell Automation to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $418.33.

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.