DA Davidson Upgrades Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) to “Hold”

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) was upgraded by DA Davidson to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on ROK. Weiss Ratings upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price target (down from $490.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $466.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $448.00 to $487.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $435.00 to $410.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $454.05.

Rockwell Automation Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of ROK opened at $466.40 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $51.90 billion, a PE ratio of 48.48, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.57. Rockwell Automation has a 12 month low of $305.44 and a 12 month high of $474.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $432.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $408.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.42. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 37.54% and a net margin of 12.36%.The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.45 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Rockwell Automation has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.500-13.100 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation will post 13.02 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, June 9th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John M. Miller sold 1,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $426.02, for a total transaction of $449,025.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 5,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,392,102.30. This trade represents a 15.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Terry L. Riesterer sold 4,024 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $451.97, for a total transaction of $1,818,727.28. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $60,563.98. This represents a 96.78% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 12,308 shares of company stock worth $5,339,812. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rockwell Automation

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 7.1% during the third quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 61,834 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $21,613,000 after buying an additional 4,086 shares during the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in Rockwell Automation during the fourth quarter worth $1,556,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 744,814 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $291,073,000 after buying an additional 127,733 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 911.0% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 91,808 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,720,000 after buying an additional 82,727 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maridea Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 580.0% during the 4th quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,148,000 after acquiring an additional 4,710 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

Rockwell Automation is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm designs, manufactures and supports control systems, industrial control hardware and software, and related services that help manufacturers and industrial operators automate processes, improve productivity and enable data-driven decision making. Rockwell traces its heritage to the Allen-Bradley and Rockwell automation businesses and positions itself as a provider of integrated automation solutions across discrete and process industries.

The company’s product portfolio includes programmable logic controllers (PLCs), human-machine interfaces (HMIs), variable frequency drives, sensors, safety components and other industrial control hardware, often marketed under the Allen-Bradley brand.