Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Grows Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 48,567 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,452 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $13,880,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. West Oak Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 455.6% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 41.0% during the fourth quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 141 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Rockwell Automation from $285.00 to $280.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.42.

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Rockwell Automation Price Performance

ROK stock traded down $3.80 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $269.06. The stock had a trading volume of 769,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 852,419. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $242.81 and a 52-week high of $308.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $279.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $278.79. The company has a market cap of $30.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.31 per share. 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 1.95%. Rockwell Automation's payout ratio is 65.26%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 850 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $490,242.93. The trade was a 34.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total transaction of $248,810.28. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at $300,219.71. This represents a 45.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,352 shares of company stock valued at $1,246,298. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Rockwell Automation 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.