Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Position Trimmed by FORA Capital LLC

FORA Capital LLC cut its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 8.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,575 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 922 shares during the period. FORA Capital LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $2,926,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ADP. Accredited Investors Inc. boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 4,431.5% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 2,315,295 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $640,712,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264,202 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 28,478.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,194,587 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,305,780,000 after acquiring an additional 1,190,407 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 332.3% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 623,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $172,497,000 after acquiring an additional 479,145 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 242.4% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,065,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $964,989,000 after acquiring an additional 435,093 shares in the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP stock traded up $3.31 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $307.97. The stock had a trading volume of 1,048,750 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,774,169. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $290.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $267.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $227.12 and a one year high of $309.37. The firm has a market cap of $125.49 billion, a PE ratio of 32.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. Automatic Data Processing’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.08 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current 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 issued 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 2.00%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.77%.

Insider Activity

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the business’s 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 directly owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,781,200. The trade was a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.38, for a total transaction of $5,253,553.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 92,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,464,384.66. This trade represents a 17.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 70,504 shares of company stock worth $20,298,056. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price 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. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $289.91.

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.