Investors Purchase Large Volume of Put Options on Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK)

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) saw some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders bought 2,755 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 189% compared to the typical daily volume of 953 put options.

Key Stories Impacting Rockwell Automation

Here are the key news stories impacting Rockwell Automation this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New global research (the “OEM Advantage Playbook”) shows top OEMs cut downtime recovery by ~40%, positioning Rockwell’s resilience-first solutions as a clear value driver for machine builders and end customers — a potential tailwind for revenue and service demand. New research shows top OEMs cut downtime recovery by 40%, strengthening profitability through resilience-first strategies
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage of the same research in industry press (emphasizing 24‑hour recovery as a competitive edge) reinforces the narrative that Rockwell’s software and services can drive measurable operational improvements for OEMs — supportive for recurring revenue and margin expansion. Rockwell research: 24-hour recovery becomes competitive edge for OEMs
• Positive Sentiment: Rockwell opened a Customer Experience Center in Bologna to accelerate industrial innovation across EMEA — this expands local sales/engineering footprint and can shorten customer adoption cycles for automation and digital transformation projects. Rockwell Automation Opens Bologna Customer Experience Center to Accelerate Industrial Innovation Across Europe, Middle East and Africa
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts’ consensus is modestly favorable — the stock received an average “Moderate Buy” rating in recent coverage, which supports investor confidence but is not an outright upgrade spree. Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts
• Neutral Sentiment: Research/earnings estimate updates (Zacks/Q1 estimate coverage) are being circulated — useful for short-term expectation setting but not headline-moving on their own. What is Zacks Research’s Estimate for ROK Q1 Earnings?
• Negative Sentiment: Unusually large options activity: traders bought ~2,755 put contracts (≈189% above typical volume), indicating increased bearish bets or hedging that could pressure the stock or increase near-term volatility.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.02, for a total transaction of $191,361.52. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,401 shares in the company, valued at $965,250.02. This represents a 16.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew W. Fordenwalt sold 146 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.48, for a total value of $58,762.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,785,803.76. This represents a 3.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 25,531 shares of company stock valued at $10,259,637 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Rockwell Automation

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,544,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,412 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $549,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,446 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $563,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $468,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 440 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $154,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on ROK shares. Citigroup raised their target price on Rockwell Automation from $439.00 to $466.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Evercore began coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, December 15th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $440.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $435.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $430.00 price target on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Friday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $418.33.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 4.6%

ROK opened at $405.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $45.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.39, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $406.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $377.16. Rockwell Automation has a twelve month low of $215.00 and a twelve month high of $438.72.

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

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.16%.

About Rockwell Automation

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.