Trust Co. of Vermont Boosts Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. $ROK

Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,794 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. Citizens National Bank Trust Department purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth $31,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the first quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the second quarter worth $39,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rockwell Automation news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 24,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.13, for a total value of $8,543,172.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 83,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,366,453.49. This represents a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Cyril Perducat sold 1,435 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.08, for a total value of $499,494.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 3,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,318,178.96. This represents a 27.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,922 shares of company stock valued at $11,191,812 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $349.41 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $39.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.01, a PEG ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $215.00 and a 1 year high of $360.92. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $344.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $310.42.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.15. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.14% and a net margin of 12.03%.The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.71 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $375.00 price target (up from $350.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 21st. Barclays upped their price target on Rockwell Automation from $357.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America raised Rockwell Automation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $360.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, CICC Research began coverage on Rockwell Automation in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $381.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $340.16.

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.