ROCKWELL AUTOMATION LEADS NEW ERA OF MANUFACTURING WITH ELASTIC MES OFFERINGS, UNIFYING OT AND IT ON CLOUD-BASED, RESILIENT PLATFORM

Rhea-AI Summary

Bank Hapoalim completed a customer share distribution program on Sept. 22, 2025, with shares appearing in eligible customers' accounts the same day.

More than 1 million customers were offered a choice of a NIS 100 grant or two shares (valued at NIS 124.5 as of Sept. 18, 2025). Approximately 593,000 customers (owners of ~440,000 accounts) made a choice; about 394,000 customers (owners of ~288,000 accounts) elected to receive two shares. Around 60% of share recipients had not previously held securities in their bank accounts. Selected customers who chose the grant or made no selection received NIS 100 today. Shares are exempt from fees for 20 years or until sale.

Positive

• Approximately 394,000 customers chose to receive two shares
• Two-share value at NIS 124.5 versus NIS 100 cash alternative
• Program reached customers across 1,207 towns nationwide
• 60% of share recipients were new to holding securities

Negative

• None.

Key Figures

Customer grant option: NIS 100 Share option value: NIS 124.5 Eligible customers: Over 1,000,000 customers +5 more

8 metrics

Customer grant option NIS 100 Monetary grant offered per eligible customer in 2025 program

Share option value NIS 124.5 Value of two Bank Hapoalim shares as of Sep 18, 2025

Eligible customers Over 1,000,000 customers Customers offered either NIS 100 grant or two shares

Opted in to program Approximately 593,000 customers Customers choosing either grant or shares from over 1M eligible

Chose shares Approximately 394,000 customers Customers electing two shares rather than cash grant

Non-investor participation About 60% Share-choosing customers who had not previously held securities

Average age 46 years Average age of customers who chose to receive shares

Towns represented 1,207 towns Locations of customers who opted to receive shares

Market Reality Check

Price: $398.79 Vol: Volume 819,761 is below t...

normal vol

$398.79 Last Close

Volume Volume 819,761 is below the 1,102,007 share 20-day average, indicating muted trading interest pre-announcement. normal

Technical Shares trade above the 200-day MA of 322.27, reflecting a longer-term uptrend into this news.

Peers on Argus

ROK slipped 0.51% with peers also modestly lower: XYL -0.31%, IR -0.58%, OTIS -0...

ROK slipped 0.51% with peers also modestly lower: XYL -0.31%, IR -0.58%, OTIS -0.51%, AME -0.02%, SYM -0.05%. The move looks broadly in line with peers, though no momentum scanner signals or peer news confirm a strong sector-wide catalyst.

Historical Context

5 past events · Latest: Nov 18 (Positive)

Pattern 5 events

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Nov 18	Capex expansion plan	Positive	-1.1%	Announced $2B five-year investment and major new Wisconsin manufacturing campus.
Nov 13	AI product partnership	Positive	-3.8%	Integrated NVIDIA Nemotron with FactoryTalk for edge-based generative AI in automation.
Nov 12	Cybersecurity suite launch	Positive	+0.6%	Launched SecureOT platform and services to strengthen industrial cybersecurity resilience.
Nov 06	Earnings and guidance	Positive	+2.7%	Reported Q4 and FY25 results with higher adjusted EPS and FY26 growth guidance.
Oct 30	Dividend increase	Positive	+0.7%	Raised quarterly dividend to $1.38 per share, signaling confidence in cash generation.

Pattern Detected

Recent company-specific news skews positive, with three of the last five announcements seeing share price gains, while two innovation-focused updates coincided with modest sell-offs.

Recent Company History

This announcement follows a series of strategic moves in late 2025. On Oct 30, Rockwell raised its dividend to $1.38 per share, and on Nov 6 reported Q4 sales of $2,316M and full-year sales of $8,342M, with strong adjusted EPS growth. Mid-November brought launches in cybersecurity (SecureOT on Nov 12) and edge-based generative AI with NVIDIA on Nov 13. On Nov 18, Rockwell outlined a $2 billion five-year investment including a major new Wisconsin manufacturing site, framing today’s cloud-focused MES launch as another step in its digital-industrial buildout.

Market Pulse Summary

This announcement highlights Rockwell’s push to modernize manufacturing via cloud-based, resilient M...

Analysis

This announcement highlights Rockwell’s push to modernize manufacturing via cloud-based, resilient MES that unifies OT and IT systems. It follows recent moves in cybersecurity, AI-enabled design tools, and a multi-year $2 billion investment plan, indicating continued emphasis on digital industrial capabilities. Investors may watch how quickly these offerings translate into bookings, how they influence margins relative to past guidance, and whether customer adoption mirrors prior cybersecurity and automation launches over the past few months.

Key Terms

capital market, securities, equity compensation, restricted stock, +1 more

5 terms

capital market financial

"contributing to deeper knowledge and better exposure to the Israeli capital market"

A capital market is the system and places where businesses, governments and other organizations raise long-term money by selling stocks and bonds, and where investors buy and sell those securities. Like a town marketplace where sellers raise funds and buyers choose what to back, capital markets determine how easily organizations get financing, the cost of that financing, and the potential returns and liquidity investors can expect—key drivers of company growth and share prices.

securities financial

"had not previously held securities in their bank accounts"

Securities are financial investments that represent a claim on part of a company's assets or earnings, such as stocks or bonds. They are like certificates proving ownership or debt, which can be bought and sold in financial markets. Securities matter to investors because they offer opportunities to grow wealth, earn income, or manage risk through different types of investments.

equity compensation financial

"as part of equity compensation from Rockwell Automation"

Equity compensation is pay given to employees, executives or contractors in the form of company ownership—such as stock, stock options or restricted shares—rather than just cash. It matters to investors because it can align workers' incentives with shareholders (like paying someone in slices of the same pie they help grow), but it also increases the number of shares outstanding and company expenses, affecting ownership percentages and earnings per share.

restricted stock financial

"shares to be sold were acquired on 12/08/2025 via a restricted stock lapse"

Shares granted to an individual that carry limits on transfer or sale until certain conditions are met, such as staying with the company for a set time or hitting performance targets. Think of them as a locked gift that gradually opens; for investors they matter because they affect how many shares may enter the market later, signal management incentives and potential dilution, and reveal confidence in future company performance.

shares outstanding financial

"there were 112,273,567 Rockwell Automation shares outstanding at the time"

Shares outstanding are the total number of a company’s stock units held by all shareholders, including institutional investors and company insiders — think of them as the total number of slices of the company’s ownership pie. Investors use this number to calculate how much of the company each share represents, and it directly affects per-share measures like earnings per share, ownership percentage and valuation; when the slice count changes, an investor’s claim and the company’s per-share metrics change too.

AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.

MES products from Rockwell meet manufacturers' immediate needs while laying the foundation for future autonomous operations

MILWAUKEE, Dec. 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK), the world's largest company dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, today announced a series of strategic innovations to its Manufacturing Execution System (MES) portfolio, focused on flexibility, scalability and resiliency.

Rockwell's elastic MES portfolio is a cloud-native, interoperable MES platform designed to unify operations across operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT). This elastic, modular approach accelerates time to value, simplifies operations and allows manufacturers to scale capabilities as needed – empowering progress toward autonomous operations.

Traditional MES solutions often operate in silos, limiting visibility across OT and IT. According to Rockwell's 2025 State of Smart Manufacturing Report, 21% of manufacturing leaders cite integration challenges as a top internal obstacle. Rockwell's elastic MES eliminates these barriers with a single, unified platform that connects the manufacturing lifecycle - from materials and inventory to production and tooling. Embedded analytics, AI-driven insights and connected worker technology keep production agile, visible and optimized.    

"Legacy MES systems, while foundational, have become barriers to agility in an era defined by rapid change," said Lorenzo Veronesi, associate research director, IDC, a manufacturing research service. "This future lies in modern, flexible and scalable MES platforms that enable manufacturers to reconfigure processes on demand, integrate seamlessly across the digital thread, and accelerate innovation. This evolution marks a critical step in moving the industry toward a truly adaptive, future-ready operations."

"Our elastic MES strategy and investments drive a fundamental shift in how manufacturers connect and optimize their operations," said Anthony Murphy, vice president of product management, Rockwell Automation. "DIY and disparate systems increase cost, risk and complexity. Rockwell's elastic MES unifies critical applications across OT and IT on a cloud-native, resilient architecture that grows with our customers."

Rockwell's Elastic MES Solutions

Rockwell's MES solutions serve as the digital backbone of modern manufacturing, connecting software, hardware and services into a unified OT/IT environment. Designed for interoperability and scalability, the platform combines the power of the cloud with the resilience of the edge.  

Rockwell's MES portfolio includes the following elastic qualities:

• Purpose-built for manufacturing: Tailored for discrete, hybrid, and regulated industries, ensuring compliance, traceability, and security
• Comprehensive capabilities: A multi-tenant Software as a Service (SaaS) environment with embedded AI technology to guide manufacturers along their autonomous operations journey
• Unified OT/IT integration: Seamless connectivity delivers holistic visibility and stronger business resiliency
• Extensible by design: A secure, resilient platform designed to integrate with existing systems and leverage emerging technologies like AI
• Resilient edge-to-cloud deployment: Flexible options from cloud-only to hybrid configurations to fit each site's operational needs

"Plex gives us flexibility to grow our digital infrastructure at our own pace," says David Rudofsky, chief financial officer, Wonton Food Inc. "We selected what worked for us initially and there are various capabilities we can consider for future expansion, like material tracking and production efficiency. For industries like food and beverage, Rockwell's purpose-built MES offerings simplify compliance for SQF and customer audits and reduce implementation time by eliminating the need for heavy customization. Our operations benefit from a secure and connected foundation that encourages continuous improvement." 

Operational Impact and Business Outcomes

Manufacturers worldwide are already realizing the benefits of Rockwell's MES solutions:

• A stationery, lighter, and shaver manufacturer leveraged Plex MES to unlock scalable capabilities and gain real-time production visibility.
• A baking mix manufacturer automated WIP management, and improved performance across finance and operations with Plex MES.
• A pharmaceutical developer implemented FactoryTalk® PharmaSuite® to create a digital manufacturing core and enhance efficiency.

Rockwell's MES portfolio delivers intelligent guidance, predictive insights and operational agility, helping manufacturers streamline production and evolve toward autonomous operations.

To learn more about Rockwell's elastic MES solutions, visit the Plex website.

Rockwell Automation
Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK), is a global leader in industrial automation and digital transformation. We connect the imaginations of people with the potential of technology to expand what is humanly possible, making the world more productive and more sustainable. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Rockwell Automation employs approximately 26,000 problem solvers dedicated to our customers in more than 100 countries as of fiscal year end 2025. To learn more about how we are bringing Connected Enterprise to life across industrial enterprises, visit www.rockwellautomation.com.

FAQ

How many customers of Bank Hapoalim received two shares on Sept. 22, 2025?

About 394,000 customers (owners of approximately 288,000 accounts) chose to receive two shares.

What was the value of the two Bank Hapoalim shares offered on Sept. 18, 2025?

The two shares were valued at NIS 124.5 as of Sept. 18, 2025.

If I chose the cash option, when did I receive the NIS 100 grant from Bank Hapoalim?

Eligible customers who chose the grant or made no selection received the NIS 100 grant in their accounts on Sept. 22, 2025.

Are the two Bank Hapoalim shares subject to fees after distribution?

The distributed shares are exempt from fees for 20 years or until the shares are sold, whichever comes first.

What percentage of customers who received shares had no prior securities holdings?

About 60% of customers who chose the shares had not previously held securities in their bank accounts.