Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lessened its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 34.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 152,354 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 78,738 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.13% of Rockwell Automation worth $43,540,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Savvy Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at about $213,000. Granite Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 72,326 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $20,670,000 after buying an additional 19,755 shares in the last quarter. Lansdowne Partners UK LLP grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 288.4% during the 4th quarter. Lansdowne Partners UK LLP now owns 6,129 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,752,000 after buying an additional 4,551 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Rockwell Automation by 61.3% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 54,592 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $15,603,000 after buying an additional 20,751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 964.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 199,952 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $57,144,000 after acquiring an additional 181,166 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total value of $255,178.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,633 shares in the company, valued at $490,242.93. The trade was a 34.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total transaction of $75,500.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,922 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $495,260.96. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,075,923. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on ROK. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Stephens upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $297.11.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 4.5 %

Shares of ROK stock traded up $10.59 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $245.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 242,975 shares, compared to its average volume of 866,996. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $260.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $274.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.00 and a 12-month high of $308.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.70 billion, a PE ratio of 30.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.