Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. Has $26.89 Million Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. lowered its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 2.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 88,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,800 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing accounts for approximately 1.1% of Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $26,887,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ADP. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 236,707 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $69,290,000 after acquiring an additional 21,910 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 42.8% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,725 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 1,117 shares during the last quarter. Napatree Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 3,199 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $936,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 8.9% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 250,836 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $76,638,000 after acquiring an additional 20,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 92.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,026 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,935,000 after acquiring an additional 4,808 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on ADP. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Mizuho upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $321.00 to $332.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. TD Securities increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $323.00 to $315.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 478 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.14, for a total value of $140,120.92. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,364 shares in the company, valued at $2,158,682.96. This trade represents a 6.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total value of $458,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $311.40 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $126.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87, a PEG ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $231.27 and a 52-week high of $329.93. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $310.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $303.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.09. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 77.33% and a net margin of 19.79%. The company had revenue of $5.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.88 EPS. Automatic Data Processing’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company 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 $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.05%.

Automatic Data Processing Company 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.