Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Holdings Raised by Optas LLC

Optas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 9.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,077 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Optas LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $298,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ADP. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC raised its position in Automatic Data Processing by 230.3% in the first quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC now owns 109 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth about $36,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at $9,899,862.45. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total value of $228,927.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,816,946. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was 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 owns 36,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,899,862.45. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 58,817 shares of company stock worth $15,999,208 in the last three months. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ:ADP opened at $288.18 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $211.52 and a fifty-two week high of $294.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $281.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $260.13. The stock has a market cap of $117.53 billion, a PE ratio of 30.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.78.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.08 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is 59.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on ADP shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $285.09.

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.