Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $308.95 and last traded at $308.74, with a volume of 178030 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $306.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ADP shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. UBS Group lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Citigroup upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. 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, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.1 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $286.03 and a 200 day moving average of $263.23. 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 firm has a market cap of $125.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.82, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.77 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.08 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. This is a positive change from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.74%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.38, for a total transaction of $5,253,553.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 92,807 shares in the company, valued at $25,464,384.66. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.38, for a total transaction of $5,253,553.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 92,807 shares in the company, valued at $25,464,384.66. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $11,692,500.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,781,200. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 97,792 shares of company stock valued at $27,691,708. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

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.