3. Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35
Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) specializes in 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. Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) focuses on integrated robot technology and robot automation, and it is one of the premier stocks to consider for exposure to the robotics industry.
On October 27, Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) declared a $1.18 per share quarterly dividend, a 5.4% increase from its prior dividend of $1.12. The dividend is payable on December 12, to shareholders of record on November 14. The dividend yield on November 22 came in at 1.77%.
Baird analyst Richard Eastman on November 17 raised the price target on Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) to $265 from $250 and kept an Outperform rating on the shares. The analyst observed that tighter integration of hardware, software, services, and scalable platforms compatible with vertical specific applications is supporting higher penetration.
Among the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, 35 funds reported owning stakes in Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) at the end of Q3 2022, compared to 28 funds in the prior quarter. Israel Englander’s Millennium Management is the largest stakeholder of the company, with 953,525 shares worth $205 million.
Here is what Harding Loevner Global Equity Fund has to say about Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) in its Q1 2022 investor letter:
“Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) is one such provider, which we purchased during the market correction this quarter. The company—still based in Milwaukee, where it developed its first product, a device to control the speed of electric motors, 120 years ago—has a particular focus on North America. Rockwell’s sales growth had stalled during the US capex recession following the recovery from the Global Financial Crisis. The company sold sensors, actuators, valves, and control software, but lacked the ability to weave all these offerings together to provide a single control point for clients wanting to automate an existing plant or build a fully automated new one. Its 2018 minority investment in PTC Inc (NASDAQ:PTC), a Boston-based industrial software firm with a strong capability in augmented reality and visualization tools, marked a turning point in Rockwell’s fortunes. Through this partnership, Rockwell was able to develop software that integrated data from individual business segments, stitching it together on its “FactoryTalk” platform, to give managers a real-time digital picture of their operations. The company is now a chief enabler and beneficiary of reshoring initiatives as a wave of manufacturers scarred by pandemic supply chain disruptions look to automation to help them recreate some of the cost savings that had driven their offshoring in the first place. After hardly growing for seven years, the company saw orders increase 40% in the first quarter over the same period last year and predicted organic sales growth of between 14% and 17%.”
