Nixon Peabody Trust Co. Trims Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. lowered its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 8.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,993 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 623 shares during the quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $2,137,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Main Street Group LTD grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 50.7% in the fourth quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 113 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 121.8% in the fourth quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC now owns 122 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ADP shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. TD Securities increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $305.64.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total transaction of $458,070.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,686,852.74. The trade was a 11.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,451 shares of company stock worth $743,024 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.2%

ADP opened at $326.53 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $132.55 billion, a PE ratio of 34.05, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $231.27 and a 1-year high of $327.99. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $304.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $302.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $5.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.49 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. The company’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.88 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 63.05%.

About Automatic Data Processing

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.