Transcend Capital Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,092 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 334 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $7,638,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. Accredited Investors Inc. boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 4,431.5% during 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 during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted 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 valued at $3,305,780,000 after buying an additional 1,190,407 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $160,920,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 332.3% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 623,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $172,497,000 after buying an additional 479,145 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,334,580 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,098,541,000 after acquiring an additional 424,328 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ADP shares. Mizuho lifted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen raised their price objective 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. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $293.55.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $929,007.90. The trade was a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,077,721.04. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

ADP stock opened at $311.97 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $298.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $289.74. The stock has a market cap of $127.12 billion, a PE ratio of 32.53, a P/E/G ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $313.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. On average, analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.23%.

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.