Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) Given New $310.00 Price Target at Mizuho

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) had its price target hoisted by Mizuho from $281.00 to $310.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Mizuho currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on ADP. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays increased 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. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of ADP stock opened at $304.85 on Monday. 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 has a 12-month low of $223.28 and a 12-month high of $306.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $282.92 and a 200-day moving average of $261.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.08 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current 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 issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 59.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the transaction, the director now owns 36,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,899,862.45. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Don Mcguire sold 3,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were 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 owns 41,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,440,548.48. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,899,862.45. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 58,817 shares of company stock worth $15,999,208 over the last quarter. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,769,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,932,020,000 after purchasing an additional 173,298 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 12.0% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,065,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $964,989,000 after buying an additional 435,093 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.3% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,625,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $905,354,000 after acquiring an additional 81,869 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.1% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,548,165 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $846,912,000 after acquiring an additional 139,561 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd increased its position in Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,556,377 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $610,182,000 after acquiring an additional 9,464 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.