Pinebridge Investments L.P. Boosts Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Pinebridge Investments L.P. grew its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 45.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 154,799 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 48,413 shares during the quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. owned 0.14% of Rockwell Automation worth $44,240,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ROK. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at about $284,177,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 85,513.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 675,487 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $193,047,000 after purchasing an additional 674,698 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 102.3% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,287,731 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $368,021,000 after purchasing an additional 651,116 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,115,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,033,476,000 after buying an additional 432,934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,073,594 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $580,095,000 after buying an additional 430,498 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ROK. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $248.00 to $201.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $297.11.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of ROK opened at $234.20 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $215.00 and a 12 month high of $308.70. The stock has a market cap of $26.48 billion, a PE ratio of 29.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The stock's 50-day moving average is $260.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $274.86.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The company 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 dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of Rockwell Automation 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,633 shares in the company, valued at approximately $490,242.93. The trade was a 34.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.43, for a total transaction of $351,364.33. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,650 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,819.50. This trade represents a 25.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,075,923 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

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.

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