StockNews.com Downgrades Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) to Hold

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on ADP. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $267.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $265.36.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

ADP traded up $1.78 during trading on Thursday, hitting $277.69. 1,559,304 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,646,781. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $263.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $251.30. The company has a market cap of $113.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.99, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing has a twelve month low of $205.53 and a twelve month high of $281.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued 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 return on equity of 89.20% and a net margin of 19.54%. The firm had revenue of $4.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.89 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total transaction of $7,164,724.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,959,908.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Automatic Data Processing news, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 92,807 shares in the company, valued at $25,464,384.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total transaction of $7,164,724.32. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,959,908.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 58,817 shares of company stock worth $15,999,208. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Automatic Data Processing

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlueSpruce Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 1st quarter valued at $365,757,000. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,543,317 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $825,487,000 after buying an additional 649,791 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 27.7% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,715,382 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $678,601,000 after acquiring an additional 589,831 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 238.1% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 784,003 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $195,797,000 after buying an additional 552,096 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 242.4% in the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 644,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $153,749,000 after acquiring an additional 456,027 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

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.