Qsemble Capital Management LP Boosts Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Qsemble Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 240.2% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 15,479 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,929 shares during the period. Automatic Data Processing accounts for 0.7% of Qsemble Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Qsemble Capital Management LP’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $3,695,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,769,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,932,020,000 after buying an additional 173,298 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,492,425 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,279,570,000 after buying an additional 249,566 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings 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 last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,556,377 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $610,182,000 after purchasing an additional 9,464 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.6 %

NASDAQ:ADP opened at $277.48 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $258.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $250.18. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $205.53 and a 12 month high of $279.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $113.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 89.20%. The firm had revenue of $4.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is 62.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on ADP. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $267.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $282.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $265.36.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total value of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,899,862.45. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total transaction of $228,927.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,946. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,899,862.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 58,817 shares of company stock valued at $15,999,208. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.