Zacks Research Issues Optimistic Outlook for ADP Earnings

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research lifted their Q3 2026 EPS estimates for Automatic Data Processing in a report released on Wednesday, February 19th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the business services provider will post earnings of $2.99 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.96. The consensus estimate for Automatic Data Processing’s current full-year earnings is $9.93 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Automatic Data Processing’s Q1 2027 earnings at $2.69 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $2.88 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $11.75 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on ADP. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, 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 note on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $293.55.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $313.37 on Monday. Automatic Data Processing has a 52 week low of $231.27 and a 52 week high of $314.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.68, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $299.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $291.25.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

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 issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $929,007.90. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. Accredited Investors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $640,712,000 after buying an additional 2,264,202 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at about $455,993,000. Winslow Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth about $396,714,000. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 26.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,136,763 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,796,415,000 after acquiring an additional 1,299,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth approximately $342,942,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.