Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC reduced its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 73.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,980 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 5,537 shares during the period. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC's holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 455.6% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Tessa M. Myers sold 1,231 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,041,819.50. This represents a 25.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total transaction of $255,178.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,633 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $490,242.93. The trade was a 34.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,352 shares of company stock worth $1,246,298. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ROK. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Stephens upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.68.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Rockwell Automation stock traded down $6.68 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $255.30. 599,437 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 828,545. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $28.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $242.81 and a 52-week high of $308.70. The firm's 50 day moving average is $283.06 and its 200 day moving average is $278.81.

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

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. Rockwell Automation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.26%.

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.