Head-To-Head Comparison: Rockwell Automation (ROK) and Its Competitors

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) is one of 216 publicly-traded companies in the “Electrical Equipment” industry, but how does it contrast to its peers? We will compare Rockwell Automation to similar companies based on the strength of its profitability, dividends, risk, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership and analyst recommendations.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Rockwell Automation and its peers top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rockwell Automation	$8.34 billion	$869.00 million	40.83
Rockwell Automation Competitors	$2.38 billion	$142.37 million	21.52

Rockwell Automation has higher revenue and earnings than its peers. Rockwell Automation is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Rockwell Automation and its peers, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rockwell Automation	0	13	9	0	2.41
Rockwell Automation Competitors	2279	5148	7186	433	2.38

Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus price target of $468.00, suggesting a potential upside of 7.43%. As a group, “Electrical Equipment” companies have a potential upside of 43.75%. Given Rockwell Automation’s peers higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Rockwell Automation has less favorable growth aspects than its peers.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

75.7% of Rockwell Automation shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 37.4% of shares of all “Electrical Equipment” companies are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of Rockwell Automation shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 15.1% of shares of all “Electrical Equipment” companies are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Rockwell Automation has a beta of 1.51, indicating that its share price is 51% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Rockwell Automation’s peers have a beta of -21.36, indicating that their average share price is 2,236% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Rockwell Automation and its peers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rockwell Automation	13.39%	39.83%	12.97%
Rockwell Automation Competitors	-354.39%	-45.14%	-7.93%

Dividends

Rockwell Automation pays an annual dividend of $5.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Rockwell Automation pays out 51.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Electrical Equipment” companies pay a dividend yield of 1.5% and pay out 27.0% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Rockwell Automation has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years. Rockwell Automation lags its peers as a dividend stock, given its lower dividend yield and higher payout ratio.

Summary

Rockwell Automation beats its peers on 9 of the 15 factors compared.

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. The Intelligent Devices segment offers drives, motion, safety, sensing, industrial components, and configured-to-order products. The Software & Control segment provides control and visualization software and hardware, information software, and network and security infrastructure solutions. The Lifecycle Services segment provides consulting, professional services and solutions, and connected and maintenance services. The company sells its solutions primarily through independent distributors in relation with its direct sales force. It serves discrete end markets, including automotive, semiconductor, and warehousing and logistics, as well as general industries comprising printing and publishing, marine, glass, fiber and textiles, airports, and aerospace; hybrid end markets, such as food and beverage, life sciences, household and personal care, and tire, as well as eco industrial, including water/wastewater, waste management, mass transit, and renewable energy; and process end markets comprising oil and gas, mining, metals, chemicals, pulp and paper, and others. Rockwell Automation, Inc. was founded in 1903 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.