WealthPLAN Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 705 Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

WealthPLAN Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 705 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ADP. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP David Foskett sold 1,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.29, for a total transaction of $290,447.16. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,958 shares in the company, valued at $1,723,589.82. This trade represents a 14.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.7 %

ADP stock opened at $308.15 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $297.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $288.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $231.27 and a 52-week high of $311.67. The firm has a market cap of $125.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.13, a PEG ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ADP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $293.55.

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.