Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp Lowers Stake in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)

Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp decreased its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 4.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 49,309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,230 shares during the period. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $13,238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Rockwell Automation by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,404 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,256,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Rockwell Automation during the third quarter valued at $464,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rockwell Automation in the third quarter valued at about $1,348,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Rockwell Automation by 34.5% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 694 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $186,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 16.3% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 39,113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,500,000 after acquiring an additional 5,480 shares in the last quarter. 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 several research reports. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Rockwell Automation from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Rockwell Automation from $288.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Rockwell Automation from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. HSBC upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $355.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Rockwell Automation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Thursday. Two 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $301.17.

Rockwell Automation Stock Down 1.9 %

NYSE:ROK opened at $297.28 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $242.81 and a twelve month high of $312.76. The company has a market cap of $33.56 billion, a PE ratio of 35.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s 50 day moving average is $280.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $269.96.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.64 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. This is a boost from Rockwell Automation’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Rockwell Automation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.29%.

Rockwell Automation declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Blake D. Moret sold 1,121 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.01, for a total transaction of $338,553.21. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 81,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,690,525.54. This trade represents a 1.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott Genereux sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.04, for a total transaction of $83,967.12. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $961,695.36. This represents a 8.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,541 shares of company stock valued at $10,586,674 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.