Exeter Financial LLC Has $4.18 Million Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Exeter Financial LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,696 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Automatic Data Processing comprises about 1.9% of Exeter Financial LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest position. Exeter Financial LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $4,184,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ADP. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter worth approximately $455,993,000. Winslow Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth $396,714,000. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 26.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,136,763 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,796,415,000 after acquiring an additional 1,299,390 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $342,942,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 41,710.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,090,422 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $319,199,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,814 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP stock opened at $324.12 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $131.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $303.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $301.62. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $327.99.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.49 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.88 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 63.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on ADP. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Securities upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $305.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,218,112.80. This trade represents a 6.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total transaction of $458,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,073 shares in the company, valued at $3,686,852.74. This trade represents a 11.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 2,451 shares of company stock valued at $743,024. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.