Short Interest in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Increases By 10.7%

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,080,000 shares, a growth of 10.7% from the November 30th total of 5,490,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,680,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.6 days. Currently, 1.5% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Two 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 MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of ADP stock traded down $5.08 on Monday, reaching $291.10. 81,271 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,653,923. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $298.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.40. The stock has a market cap of $118.61 billion, a PE ratio of 31.07, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $309.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $4.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.77 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.08 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The business 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. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 sale, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares in the company, 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 hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the period. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 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.