Clearbridge Investments LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 7.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 850,550 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 56,767 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $203,018,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. BlueSpruce Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth about $365,757,000. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of 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 increased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 27.7% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,715,382 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $678,601,000 after buying an additional 589,831 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 552,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 242.4% in the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 644,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $153,749,000 after acquiring an additional 456,027 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $280.08 on Wednesday. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $268.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $253.22. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12-month low of $205.53 and a 12-month high of $281.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $114.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.26, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.74 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 89.20% and a net margin of 19.54%. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total value of $7,164,724.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,959,908.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total value of $7,164,724.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,959,908.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the company’s 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 owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,899,862.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 58,817 shares of company stock worth $15,999,208 over the last 90 days. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on ADP shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $267.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $267.83.

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.