Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.1% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,214,800 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,400 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $336,172,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Automatic Data Processing news, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.38, for a total value of $5,253,553.86. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 92,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,464,384.66. This represents a 17.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,816,946. This represents a 7.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 97,792 shares of company stock valued at $27,691,708 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $297.64 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.12 and a fifty-two week high of $309.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $287.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $264.02. The company has a market cap of $121.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.77, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.54 per share. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ADP shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Bank of America boosted 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $289.91.

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.