Talbot Financial LLC Buys New Shares in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Talbot Financial LLC purchased a new position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 25,809 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,929,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth about $301,000. Kwmg LLC lifted its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Kwmg LLC now owns 20,620 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,536,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 31.4% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $537,000 after buying an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.4% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 23,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,205,000 after buying an additional 1,389 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 8.7% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 220,167 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $59,106,000 after buying an additional 17,660 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Price Performance

Shares of ROK stock opened at $266.16 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $30.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.02, a P/E/G ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $262.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $268.40. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $242.81 and a one year high of $312.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.63. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.03 billion. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 34.09% and a net margin of 11.56%. Rockwell Automation’s revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.01 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.67 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ROK shares. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Rockwell Automation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Monday, July 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $283.60.

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.