Cerity Partners LLC Buys 1,348 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,974 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,348 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $9,048,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. West Oak Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,260.96. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total value of $248,810.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,219.71. This represents a 45.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 3,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,075,923. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on ROK. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Stephens raised Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $300.63.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 5.0 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $230.22 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $268.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $276.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $215.00 and a fifty-two week high of $308.70. The company has a market cap of $26.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.