Davis R M Inc. Sells 566 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Davis R M Inc. trimmed its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,274 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 566 shares during the quarter. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $8,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 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 have sold a total of 5,478 shares of company stock worth $1,617,241 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

ADP stock opened at $302.99 on Tuesday. 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 business’s fifty day simple moving average is $302.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $294.17. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $322.84. The firm has a market cap of $123.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.59, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com downgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.