Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA Buys 165 Shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,130 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 165 shares during the quarter. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $7,492,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. KLCM Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 16.6% during the third quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. now owns 1,136 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,728 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $780,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 676.7% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 32,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,984,000 after buying an additional 28,016 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 11,423 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,266,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC now owns 85,551 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,562,000 after buying an additional 4,093 shares during the period. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

NYSE:ROK traded up $3.62 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $273.58. 888,213 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,035,035. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $252.11 and a 52-week high of $348.52. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $282.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $284.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.03, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.43.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.62 by ($0.58). The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 13.35% and a return on equity of 37.22%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.46 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.57%.

Insider Activity

In other Rockwell Automation news, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total transaction of $167,448.19. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,337,482.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.52, for a total value of $140,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,383 shares in the company, valued at $1,229,519.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Brian A. Shepherd sold 637 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.87, for a total transaction of $167,448.19. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,088 shares in the company, valued at $1,337,482.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,877 shares of company stock worth $5,058,772 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $269.00 to $265.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Berenberg Bank reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $290.00 price objective (down from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $330.00 to $322.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $254.00 target price on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Rockwell Automation from $324.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $310.08.

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.