Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) Price Target Raised to $335.00 at Morgan Stanley

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) had its target price lifted by Morgan Stanley from $320.00 to $335.00 in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on ROK. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 target price for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $286.13.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.1 %

Rockwell Automation stock opened at $286.15 on Friday. Rockwell Automation has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.31 billion, a PE ratio of 34.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $269.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $266.82.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation will post 9.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total value of $154,511.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ROK. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 0.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,683,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $717,865,000 after purchasing an additional 14,040 shares in the last quarter. Brophy Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth about $645,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 511.2% during the 3rd quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV now owns 1,528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,278 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4,197.9% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 2,020 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $579,000 after acquiring an additional 1,973 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 34,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,184,000 after purchasing an additional 1,928 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Company 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.