Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Bought by Optas LLC

Optas LLC grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 984 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the quarter. Optas LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $235,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,769,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,932,020,000 after purchasing an additional 173,298 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,492,425 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,279,570,000 after purchasing an additional 249,566 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,625,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $905,354,000 after purchasing an additional 81,869 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 27.7% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,715,382 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $678,601,000 after purchasing an additional 589,831 shares during the period. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,556,377 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $610,182,000 after buying an additional 9,464 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

NASDAQ ADP traded up $0.22 during trading on Friday, reaching $269.60. 1,206,702 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,658,561. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $205.53 and a 1-year high of $270.99. The company has a market cap of $110.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $250.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $248.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 89.20% and a net margin of 19.54%. The business had revenue of $4.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.89 EPS. Automatic Data Processing’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 10.01 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 62.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $267.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America boosted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $265.36.

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.