Tax - On a GAAP basis, the effective tax rate in the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was 18.7 percent compared to 21.1 percent in the third quarter of fiscal 2018. The lower effective tax rate in the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was primarily related to the tax effects on the PTC adjustments and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Tax Act”), partially offset by lower discrete tax items compared to the third quarter of fiscal 2018. The Adjusted Effective Tax Rate for the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was 17.3 percent compared to 18.7 percent in the prior year. The lower Adjusted Effective Tax Rate in 2019 is primarily related to the Tax Act.

Share Repurchases - During the third quarter of fiscal 2019, the Company repurchased 1.5 million shares of its common stock at a cost of $246.3 million. At June 30, 2019, $333.3 million remained available under the September 6, 2018 share repurchase authorization. Yesterday, the Board of Directors authorized the Company to deploy an additional $1.0 billion to repurchase shares of its common stock.

Non-GAAP Measures - Organic sales, total segment operating earnings, total segment operating margin, Adjusted Income, Adjusted EPS, Adjusted Effective Tax Rate, free cash flow, and return on invested capital are non-GAAP measures that are reconciled to GAAP measures in the attachments to this release.

Conference Call

A conference call to discuss our financial results will take place at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, July 25, 2019. The call and related financial charts will be webcast and accessible via the Rockwell Automation website ( https://www.rockwellautomation.com/investors/).

This news release contains statements (including certain projections and business trends) that are “forward-looking statements” as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “believe”, “estimate”, “project”, “plan”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “will”, “intend” and other similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, including but not limited to:

• macroeconomic factors, including global and regional business conditions, the availability and cost of capital, commodity prices, the cyclical nature of our customers’ capital spending, sovereign debt concerns and currency exchange rates;
• laws, regulations and governmental policies affecting our activities in the countries where we do business, including those related to tariffs, taxation, and trade controls;
• the successful development of advanced technologies and demand for and market acceptance of new and existing hardware and software products;
• the availability and price of components and materials;
• the successful execution of our cost productivity initiatives;
• the availability, effectiveness and security of our information technology systems;
• competitive hardware and software products, solutions and services and pricing pressures, and our ability to provide high quality products, solutions and services;
• disruptions to our distribution channels or the failure of distributors to develop and maintain capabilities to sell our products;
• a disruption of our business due to natural disasters, pandemics, acts of war, strikes, terrorism, social unrest or other causes;
• our ability to manage and mitigate the risk related to security vulnerabilities and breaches of our products, solutions and services;
• intellectual property infringement claims by others and the ability to protect our intellectual property;
• the uncertainty of claims by taxing authorities in the various jurisdictions where we do business;
• our ability to attract, develop, and retain qualified personnel;
• the uncertainties of litigation, including liabilities related to the safety and security of the hardware and software products, solutions and services we sell;
• our ability to manage and mitigate the risks associated with our solutions and services businesses;
• the successful integration and management of strategic transactions and achievement of the expected benefits of these transactions;
• risks associated with our investment in common stock of PTC Inc., including the potential for volatility in our reported quarterly earnings associated with changes in the market value of such stock;
• our ability to manage costs related to employee retirement and health care benefits; and
• other risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to those detailed from time to time in our Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings.

These forward-looking statements reflect our beliefs as of the date of filing this release. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK), the world's largest company dedicated to industrial automation and information, makes its customers more productive and the world more sustainable. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wis., Rockwell Automation employs approximately 23,000 people serving customers in more than 80 countries.