Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the ten ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $302.30.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ADP. UBS Group increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $300.83 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing has a 1 year low of $231.27 and a 1 year high of $322.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.37, 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 quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company’s fifty day moving average is $303.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $296.20.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total value of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,077,721.04. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of Automatic Data Processing 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 7,244 shares in the company, valued at $2,218,112.80. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Automatic Data Processing

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ADP. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 23.8% during the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 6,976 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,930,000 after buying an additional 1,339 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 12.9% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 17,514 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,847,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.2% during the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 12,285 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,400,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 331.8% during the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 5,039 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,375,000 after acquiring an additional 3,872 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centric Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.1% in the third quarter. Centric Wealth Management now owns 10,872 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,318,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

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.