5 Stocks to Watch as Automation Drives Demand for Robotics – Zacks.com

The trend of automation has been gaining steam over the years, fueled by technological advancements to increase efficiency and precision that help in delivering improved products and services. Interestingly, robots are being deployed at an increasing rate across various industries to optimize the process flow. Notably, the automotive industry has been making use of robotics for quite some time now to automate the production process and the trend looks set to accelerate even further.

While traditional robots took care of tasks like welding, which requires immense precision to avoid disrupting the process flow, or repetitive tasks like assembling of parts, technological advancements are leading to the introduction of collaborative robots. These robots can be safely operated alongside humans and assist them in a wide number of tasks owing to their flexibility in comparison to traditional robots. Moreover, automation is also making its way into the agricultural space and farmers are making use of innovations like autonomous tractors to enhance harvesting activities and increase production yields.

Meanwhile, robotics is also becoming an integral part of healthcare, especially when it comes to surgeries. Markedly, robots allow surgeons to carry out delicate surgeries with improved precision and control in comparison to traditional surgical methods. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the use of robotics in the other areas of healthcare. Robots are being used to disinfect hospitals and other healthcare premises to curb the spread of the virus while they are also helping medical practitioners to remotely monitor their patients.

Robots were already being used for delivery but the outbreak of the pandemic only helped in accelerating that demand. To avoid the risk of transmission of the virus through contact and practice social distancing, robots also saw increasing deployment to ensure contactless deliveries.

Reflective of the positive developments that have been taking place with regards to automation, the robotics market looks set to grow in the near term. Notably, per a report by Mordor Intelligence, the robotics market is expected to reach $74 billion by 2026 from $23.67 billion in 2020, at a CAGR of 20.4% from 2021 to 2026.

The trend of automation looks set to accelerate going forward as robots ensure that a task is carried out with better precision and efficiency, thereby delivering improved products and services. Hence, this seems to be an opportune moment to take a look at companies that stand to benefit from this continued uptick in automation. Notably, we have selected five such stocks that carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Deere & Company (DE Quick QuoteDE - Free Report) , together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and distributes various equipment worldwide and the company is also focusing on automation by introducing products like autonomous electric tractor, autonomous drone sprayers, and so on. It currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 0.9% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 84.2%.

Cognex Corporation (CGNX Quick QuoteCGNX - Free Report) provides machine vision products that capture and analyze visual information in order to automate manufacturing and distribution tasks worldwide. The company also provides a range of inspection tasks, including part location, identification, robotic guidance, and so on. It currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 3.6% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 43%.

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (ROK Quick QuoteROK - Free Report) provides industrial automation and digital transformation solutions and the companys Architecture & Software segment provides products including programmable automation controllers, design, visualization and simulation software, among others. It currently has a Zacks Rank #3. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 2.1% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 18.6%.

ABB Ltd (ABB Quick QuoteABB - Free Report) manufactures and sells electrification, industrial automation, and robotics and motion products for customers in utilities, industry and transport, and infrastructure worldwide. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #3. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 3.3% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 29.6%.

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. ISRG, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures and markets da Vinci surgical systems, including surgeon's consoles, patient-side carts, 3-D HD vision systems, among others, and its related instruments and accessories. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #3. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 8.4% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 30.2%.

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5 Stocks to Watch as Automation Drives Demand for Robotics - Zacks.com