TimesSquare Capital Management LLC Boosts Position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

TimesSquare Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 45.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 194,185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 60,295 shares during the quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $60,291,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Provence Wealth Management Group bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Rockwell Automation

In other news, CFO Nicholas C. Gangestad sold 1,989 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.17, for a total value of $573,170.13. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 12,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,520,572.89. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Rockwell Automation news, CFO Nicholas C. Gangestad sold 1,989 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.17, for a total transaction of $573,170.13. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 12,217 shares in the company, valued at $3,520,572.89. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.52, for a total value of $140,260.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,229,519.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,240 shares of company stock valued at $4,891,324. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Rockwell Automation Trading Down 1.1 %

Rockwell Automation stock traded down $3.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $270.50. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,515,102 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,029,059. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $252.11 and a one year high of $348.52. The stock has a market cap of $31.00 billion, a PE ratio of 25.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a 50 day moving average of $281.65 and a 200-day moving average of $283.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 13.35% and a return on equity of 37.22%. The firm’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.01 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 11.98 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is 47.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $324.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Berenberg Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $290.00 target price (down from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $322.00 to $316.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $310.00 to $304.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $307.93.

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.