Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two equities 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. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $289.91.

ADP has been the subject of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

ADP opened at $306.92 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing has a 1-year low of $227.12 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The company has a market capitalization of $125.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $291.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $267.58. 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 (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.08 earnings per share. Automatic Data Processing’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This is a positive change from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Don Mcguire sold 3,179 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.38, for a total transaction of $872,254.02. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 41,696 shares in the company, valued at $11,440,548.48. The trade was a 7.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 70,504 shares of company stock valued at $20,298,056 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ADP. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 667,068 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $194,117,000 after acquiring an additional 51,828 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 220.4% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 46,379 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,834,000 after purchasing an additional 31,904 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,466 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,066,000 after buying an additional 1,378 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 9,935 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,753,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 15,384 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,257,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

About Automatic Data Processing

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.