Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Bought by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 8.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,424 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,401,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC lifted its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total transaction of $75,500.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,260.96. The trade was a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 363 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.32, for a total value of $118,454.16. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,063 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,838.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,681 shares of company stock worth $2,382,987 in the last three months. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ROK opened at $317.36 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $279.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $279.67. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $215.00 and a 52-week high of $328.90.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.97 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 65.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays raised Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $283.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, May 30th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Rockwell Automation from $258.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $271.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $317.79.

About Rockwell Automation

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.