Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Purchased by Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,134 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $5,572,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth about $35,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $306.93 on Monday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $227.12 and a 1 year high of $309.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.06 billion, a PE ratio of 32.76, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $292.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $268.30.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly 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 net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.08 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 59.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ADP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Mizuho raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two equities research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.91.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total value of $2,479,748.35. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at $9,899,862.45. This trade represents a 20.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 70,504 shares of company stock valued at $20,298,056 over the last quarter. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.