Quest Partners LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 2,248.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,711 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,553 shares during the quarter. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $1,027,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at $9,781,200. This trade represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total value of $7,164,724.32. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 88,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,959,908.96. The trade was a 23.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 97,792 shares of company stock worth $27,691,708 in the last three months. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $298.59 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $288.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $265.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12-month low of $227.12 and a 12-month high of $309.37. The firm has a market cap of $121.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.79.

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 return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.77 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.08 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. This is a positive change 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group upped 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. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.91.

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.