VOL. XCIV, NO. 247
★ WIDE MOAT STOCKS & COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES ★
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Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Rockwell Automation, Inc.
ROK · New York Stock Exchange
Weighted average of segment moat scores, combining moat strength, durability, confidence, market structure, pricing power, and market share.
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Overview
Rockwell Automation, Inc. is a global industrial automation and digital transformation company with three operating segments: Intelligent Devices (automation hardware), Software & Control (automation/control and operations software plus platforms), and Lifecycle Services (consulting, engineered solutions, and recurring services such as cybersecurity and remote monitoring). Its moat is anchored by an installed base and an integrated architecture centered on Logix, reinforced by trusted brands (e.g., Allen-Bradley) and a partner ecosystem that expands solution breadth. Pricing power is strongest in software/control where workflows and toolchains embed into customer operations; devices and services face more cyclical demand and competitive pricing. Key risks include macro-driven automation spend cycles, technology shifts toward more open/soft control stacks, and channel/distributor concentration.
Primary segment
Intelligent Devices
Market structure
Oligopoly
Market share
—
HHI: —
Coverage
3 segments · 7 tags
Updated 2025-12-31
Segments
Intelligent Devices
Industrial automation hardware (drives, motion, safety/sensing, industrial components, micro PLCs & distributed I/O)
Revenue
45%
Structure
Oligopoly
Pricing
moderate
Share
—
Peers
Software & Control
Industrial automation software and control platforms (control & visualization, operations software, digital twin/simulation, industrial network/security)
Revenue
28.6%
Structure
Oligopoly
Pricing
strong
Share
—
Peers
Lifecycle Services
Industrial automation services (consulting, engineered solutions, cybersecurity, remote monitoring, asset management)
Revenue
26.4%
Structure
Competitive
Pricing
moderate
Share
—
Peers
Moat Claims
Intelligent Devices
Industrial automation hardware (drives, motion, safety/sensing, industrial components, micro PLCs & distributed I/O)
FY2025 segment sales $3,756M and segment operating earnings $676M (operating margin ~18.0%). Revenue/operating-profit shares are computed from the FY2025 segment tables in the 10-K. Source: FY2025 Form 10-K (SEC filing) https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1024478/000102447825000116/rok-20250930.htm
Switching Costs General
Demand
Switching Costs General
Strength: 4/5 · Durability: durable · Confidence: 4/5 · 2 evidence
A large installed base of Rockwell/Allen-Bradley control and device hardware, plus architectural standardization around Logix, raises switching friction in brownfield upgrades and line expansions.
Erosion risks
- Shift toward open/soft PLCs and vendor-agnostic control runtimes
- Aggressive pricing by global peers (Siemens/Schneider/ABB/Mitsubishi)
- Cybersecurity or reliability incidents that damage trust in installed base
Leading indicators
- Hardware attach rates on expansions/upgrades of existing customer sites
- Controller/drive installed-base renewal and migration activity
- Gross margin resilience during automation downcycles
Counterarguments
- Large customers can dual-source and standardize on alternative control platforms
- Open standards and middleware can reduce the cost of changing vendors over time
Brand Trust
Demand
Brand Trust
Strength: 4/5 · Durability: durable · Confidence: 4/5 · 2 evidence
Established brands (e.g., Allen-Bradley, ControlLogix, PowerFlex) support preference and trust for mission-critical automation components.
Erosion risks
- Quality issues or high-profile outages impacting reputation
- Competitor feature parity with better price/performance
- Distributor/channel conflicts affecting customer experience
Leading indicators
- Net Promoter Score / customer satisfaction where disclosed
- Warranty/returns and quality metrics
- Premium pricing vs peers on comparable devices
Counterarguments
- For many devices, customers prioritize availability/price over brand
- Brand may be less defensible outside North America where competitors are entrenched
Ecosystem Complements
Network
Ecosystem Complements
Strength: 4/5 · Durability: durable · Confidence: 3/5 · 1 evidence
Open architecture plus a partner ecosystem increases solution breadth (devices integrate into broader automation stacks), making Rockwell devices more valuable when used inside the Rockwell-centric ecosystem.
Erosion risks
- Partners prioritize competing ecosystems (Siemens/Schneider/ABB)
- Platform fragmentation across regions/industries
- Interoperability improvements making ecosystems more substitutable
Leading indicators
- Number and depth of partner integrations/certifications
- Growth of ecosystem-related software subscriptions and services
- Customer adoption of multi-vendor reference architectures
Counterarguments
- Ecosystems can be multi-homed; integrators support many vendors
- If customers demand open, portable architectures, ecosystem advantage weakens
Software & Control
Industrial automation software and control platforms (control & visualization, operations software, digital twin/simulation, industrial network/security)
FY2025 segment sales $2,383M and segment operating earnings $708M (operating margin ~29.7%). Revenue/operating-profit shares are computed from the FY2025 segment tables in the 10-K. Source: FY2025 Form 10-K (SEC filing) https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1024478/000102447825000116/rok-20250930.htm
Suite Bundling
Demand
Suite Bundling
Strength: 4/5 · Durability: medium · Confidence: 4/5 · 2 evidence
Rockwell positions Software & Control as an integrated portfolio that bridges IT and OT, encouraging customers to buy a cohesive stack rather than point solutions.
Erosion risks
- Best-of-breed software displacing bundled suites
- Cloud-native competitors and hyperscalers pushing into industrial software
- Customers standardize on vendor-neutral platforms (OPC UA, MQTT, etc.)
Leading indicators
- Software mix and subscription/ARR growth (where disclosed)
- Segment operating margin and price realization vs peers
- Win rates on multi-product platform deals
Counterarguments
- Customers often prefer heterogeneous stacks and multi-vendor integration
- Large OEMs/integrators can negotiate pricing and avoid lock-in
Training Org Change Costs
Demand
Training Org Change Costs
Strength: 3/5 · Durability: medium · Confidence: 3/5 · 2 evidence
Engineering toolchains and configuration workflows (including proposal/design tools) create retraining and process-change costs for customers and integrators.
Erosion risks
- Standardization on open engineering environments reduces vendor-specific training
- System integrators maintain cross-vendor expertise
- Rapid UI/workflow improvements by competitors
Leading indicators
- Installed base of engineering seats/licenses (where disclosed)
- Partner/integrator certification counts
- Churn/renewal dynamics for software subscriptions
Counterarguments
- Many customers already train across multiple control platforms
- If software is modular, customers can switch components without full retraining
Data Workflow Lockin
Demand
Data Workflow Lockin
Strength: 3/5 · Durability: medium · Confidence: 3/5 · 1 evidence
Production operations software (MES/analytics/asset performance) can become embedded in plant workflows and data models, creating friction to replace once deployed at scale.
Erosion risks
- Data portability and API-first architectures reduce lock-in
- Customers adopt cloud data layers that sit above vendor apps
- Cyber incidents force platform changes
Leading indicators
- Expansion of multi-site deployments for operations software
- Net retention / renewal rates for operations software
- Customer adoption of vendor-neutral data layers
Counterarguments
- MES/ops software can be swapped with sufficient integration effort
- Value is driven by implementation quality; many integrators can implement rival systems
Lifecycle Services
Industrial automation services (consulting, engineered solutions, cybersecurity, remote monitoring, asset management)
FY2025 segment sales $2,203M and segment operating earnings $319M (operating margin ~14.5%). Revenue/operating-profit shares are computed from the FY2025 segment tables in the 10-K. Source: FY2025 Form 10-K (SEC filing) https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1024478/000102447825000116/rok-20250930.htm
Service Field Network
Supply
Service Field Network
Strength: 3/5 · Durability: medium · Confidence: 4/5 · 2 evidence
Domain expertise plus the ability to support customers throughout the lifecycle of automation investments helps win services and recurring offerings tied to the installed base.
Erosion risks
- System integrators and consultancies compete aggressively on services
- Customers bring capabilities in-house
- Cybersecurity incidents reduce trust
Leading indicators
- Recurring services revenue mix and renewal rates (where disclosed)
- Backlog and attach rates on service contracts with new system sales
- Customer adoption of remote monitoring and cybersecurity services
Counterarguments
- Services are often bid competitively and can be re-sourced
- Customers can separate services from hardware by using independent integrators
Procurement Inertia
Demand
Procurement Inertia
Strength: 3/5 · Durability: medium · Confidence: 3/5 · 2 evidence
Channel relationships and incumbent vendor status can bias service procurement toward Rockwell for modernization and support, especially when tied to distributor-identified opportunities.
Erosion risks
- Distributor consolidation increases channel bargaining power
- Direct-to-customer models by competitors
- Customer procurement mandates for multi-vendor competitive bidding
Leading indicators
- Distributor share of revenue and concentration trends
- Services win rates on distributor-originated opportunities
- Pricing/margin pressure in services
Counterarguments
- Large customers often bypass distributors and run competitive tenders
- Channel concentration can increase distributor leverage against Rockwell
Evidence
Factors ... include ... installed base, partner ecosystem, global presence and price.
Rockwell explicitly cites installed base as a key competitive factor, consistent with switching-cost dynamics in automation hardware.
Our Integrated Architecture is based on an integrated control and information architecture with Logix at its core.
An integrated control architecture encourages customer standardization on Rockwell control platforms, increasing costs to switch control families.
Trademarks such as "Allen-Bradley" ... are important to all of our business segments.
Direct company statement that key brands matter across segments, supporting a demand-side brand/trust moat.
Sales (2025, $M): Intelligent Devices 3,756; Software & Control 2,383; Lifecycle Services 2,203; Total 8,342.
Supports segment revenue-share calculations (and provides context on segment scale).
Our open architecture and strong partner ecosystem allow our customers to work with best-in-class partners.
Reinforces ecosystem-complements: customers get more value from Rockwell when partners and integrations are strong.
Showing 5 of 14 sources.
Risks & Indicators
Erosion risks
- Shift toward open/soft PLCs and vendor-agnostic control runtimes
- Aggressive pricing by global peers (Siemens/Schneider/ABB/Mitsubishi)
- Cybersecurity or reliability incidents that damage trust in installed base
- Quality issues or high-profile outages impacting reputation
- Competitor feature parity with better price/performance
- Distributor/channel conflicts affecting customer experience
Leading indicators
- Hardware attach rates on expansions/upgrades of existing customer sites
- Controller/drive installed-base renewal and migration activity
- Gross margin resilience during automation downcycles
- Net Promoter Score / customer satisfaction where disclosed
- Warranty/returns and quality metrics
- Premium pricing vs peers on comparable devices
Curation & Accuracy
This directory blends AI‑assisted discovery with human curation. Entries are reviewed, edited, and organized with the goal of expanding coverage and sharpening quality over time. Your feedback helps steer improvements (because no single human can capture everything all at once).
Details change. Pricing, features, and availability may be incomplete or out of date. Treat listings as a starting point and verify on the provider’s site before making decisions. If you spot an error or a gap, send a quick note and I’ll adjust.