Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,609 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 240 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,576,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP raised its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP now owns 18,006 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,146,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at $479,000. Essex Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation in the 4th quarter valued at $217,000. Focus Financial Network Inc. grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 1,967 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $562,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quilter Plc grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 331,887 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $94,850,000 after buying an additional 19,818 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 26,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.63, for a total transaction of $7,973,421.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 78,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,327,482.45. The trade was a 25.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total transaction of $83,967.12. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,184 shares in the company, valued at approximately $961,695.36. This represents a 8.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 36,240 shares of company stock valued at $10,800,555. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on ROK. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $315.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Stephens raised shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Rockwell Automation from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $345.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $308.05.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 2.7 %

ROK stock opened at $294.95 on Friday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $242.81 and a one year high of $308.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.35 billion, a PE ratio of 36.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $286.31 and a 200-day moving average of $277.17.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. As a group, analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.