Atom Investors LP Purchases New Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Atom Investors LP acquired a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,028 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,350,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Cultivar Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the 2nd quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $313.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Three 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $287.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total transaction of $154,511.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,576 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director James P. Keane sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.00, for a total value of $592,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,409,328. This trade represents a 14.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 30,746 shares of company stock worth $9,152,594 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of ROK traded down $4.52 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $292.60. The stock had a trading volume of 213,239 shares, compared to its average volume of 889,738. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $33.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.36. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $275.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $268.16. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $242.81 and a 52 week high of $312.76.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.64 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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 given a $1.31 dividend. This is an increase from Rockwell Automation's previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.