Apollon Wealth Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,797 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $1,489,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ROK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 2.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,752,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $786,778,000 after purchasing an additional 70,272 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Rockwell Automation by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,908,119 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $545,474,000 after buying an additional 172,577 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,518,807 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $434,181,000 after acquiring an additional 3,845 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 3.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,399,076 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $399,954,000 after acquiring an additional 43,992 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 900,626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $279,626,000 after acquiring an additional 2,736 shares in the last quarter. 75.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rockwell Automation

In other news, CEO Blake D. Moret bought 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $283.64 per share, for a total transaction of $992,740.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,215 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,901,262.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret bought 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $283.64 per share, with a total value of $992,740.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,901,262.60. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Nicholas C. Gangestad sold 1,989 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 12,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,520,572.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 17,240 shares of company stock valued at $4,891,324. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on ROK. Barclays reduced their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $320.00 to $312.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Rockwell Automation from $322.00 to $316.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $324.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Berenberg Bank reissued a “hold” rating and set a $290.00 price objective (down from $330.00) on shares of Rockwell Automation in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.93.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of ROK opened at $273.54 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $281.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $283.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $31.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.43. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a one year low of $252.11 and a one year high of $348.52.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.35. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 13.35% and a return on equity of 37.22%. The company had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.01 EPS. Rockwell Automation’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 11.98 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.57%.

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.