Arrow Financial Corp Sells 155 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Arrow Financial Corp reduced its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 4.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,048 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 155 shares during the quarter. Arrow Financial Corp’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $843,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,769,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,932,020,000 after purchasing an additional 173,298 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,065,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $964,989,000 after buying an additional 435,093 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.3% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,625,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $905,354,000 after buying an additional 81,869 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.1% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,548,165 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $846,912,000 after buying an additional 139,561 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% in the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,556,377 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $610,182,000 after acquiring an additional 9,464 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.91.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total transaction of $7,164,724.32. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares in the company, valued at $23,959,908.96. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total transaction of $228,927.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,946. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total value of $7,164,724.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares in the company, valued at $23,959,908.96. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 97,792 shares of company stock worth $27,691,708. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ADP opened at $304.73 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $225.38 and a 1-year high of $306.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The business has a 50 day moving average of $284.12 and a 200 day moving average of $261.82. The company has a market capitalization of $124.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.52, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.08 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 earnings per share 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 paid a dividend of $1.54 per share. This is a boost from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.77%.

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.