Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Sit Investment Associates Inc.

Sit Investment Associates Inc. lessened its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 42.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,780 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,075 shares during the period. Sit Investment Associates Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $794,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 3,775 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,079,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,896 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $542,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 4,195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC raised its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $386,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. now owns 1,082 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. HSBC upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stephens upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.42.

Insider Activity at Rockwell Automation

In related news, VP Isaac Woods sold 895 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.72, for a total value of $245,874.40. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,198 shares in the company, valued at $329,114.56. The trade was a 42.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.14, for a total transaction of $145,070.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $552,716.70. This trade represents a 20.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,352 shares of company stock worth $1,246,298 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 5.0 %

NYSE ROK opened at $227.25 on Monday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $214.89 and a 52-week high of $308.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $274.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $278.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.17% and a net margin of 11.38%. Equities research analysts expect that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.26%.

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.