Centaurus Financial Inc. Grows Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,994 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc.’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,877,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Rockwell Automation in the third quarter worth $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Rockwell Automation by 100.0% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the third quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the second quarter valued at $36,000. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $313.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Rockwell Automation in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $345.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $245.00 to $227.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.13.

Rockwell Automation Trading Up 4.5 %

Shares of Rockwell Automation stock opened at $290.86 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $271.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.13, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.36. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $242.81 and a 12-month high of $312.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.07. Rockwell Automation had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 11.53%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.80%. This is a positive change from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rockwell Automation news, SVP Veena M. Lakkundi sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.86, for a total value of $154,511.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,151.36. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP John M. Miller sold 467 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.07, for a total value of $132,660.69. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,363,536. The trade was a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.