Short Interest in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Increases By 10.7%

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,080,000 shares, an increase of 10.7% from the November 30th total of 5,490,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,680,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.6 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 1.7 %

NASDAQ ADP traded down $5.08 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $291.10. 81,271 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,653,923. The stock has a market cap of $118.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.07, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. 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 has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $309.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $298.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $275.40.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is 65.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $11,692,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,781,200. This trade represents a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the period. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its stake 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 period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.