Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Increases Stock Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 191.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,824 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 19,597 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $8,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of ROK stock opened at $248.25 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $28.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.92, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $215.00 and a 1 year high of $308.70. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $257.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $274.40.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ROK. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp cut their target price on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $350.00 to $283.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $297.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,922 shares of the company's stock, valued at $495,260.96. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total value of $351,364.33. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,650 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,819.50. This trade represents a 25.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,750 shares of company stock worth $1,075,923 over the last three months. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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