Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Stock Holdings Raised by Garde Capital Inc.

Garde Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 955 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $264,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 23.8% during the second quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 26,610 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,352,000 after purchasing an additional 5,114 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at about $209,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth about $470,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 5.8% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 280,961 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $77,750,000 after acquiring an additional 15,340 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dash Acquisitions Inc. boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 5.6% in the third quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. now owns 52,329 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,069,000 after acquiring an additional 2,781 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ADP has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

NASDAQ ADP opened at $298.75 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.12 and a twelve month high of $309.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.73 billion, a PE ratio of 31.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $296.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $271.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.08 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is currently 59.77%.

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.