Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Position Increased by Fmr LLC

Fmr LLC raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,268,211 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,082 shares during the period. Fmr LLC owned approximately 0.31% of Automatic Data Processing worth $371,243,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 7,243 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,120,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 149.1% in the 4th quarter. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 66,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,320,000 after purchasing an additional 39,500 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 490,671 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $143,644,000 after purchasing an additional 11,919 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 7,275 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,130,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the period. Finally, Aviva PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 962,810 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $281,843,000 after purchasing an additional 26,141 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $929,007.90. The trade was a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP David Foskett sold 1,067 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.15, for a total transaction of $305,322.05. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 6,140 shares in the company, valued at $1,756,961. This represents a 14.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,364 shares of company stock valued at $1,613,094 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $292.21 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $302.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $297.39. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.27 and a 52 week high of $322.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $119.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.74.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on ADP. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $302.30.

Automatic Data Processing Profile

Automatic Data Processing, Inc provides cloud-based human capital management solutions worldwide. It operates in two segments, Employer Services and Professional Employer Organization (PEO). The Employer Services segment offers strategic, cloud-based platforms, and human resources (HR) outsourcing solutions.