Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Acquired by Jones Financial Companies Lllp

Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 68.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 9,718 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,940 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $2,845,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in the third 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. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth $35,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. The trade was a 43.14 % decrease in their position. 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. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $310.43 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $126.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.37, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $301.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $293.19. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12-month low of $231.27 and a 12-month high of $322.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. As a group, equities 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ADP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price 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. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.18.

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.