Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Purchased by Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 43.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 88,755 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 26,861 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $24,561,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter worth $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at $9,781,200. This trade represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,899,862.45. This represents a 20.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 70,504 shares of company stock valued at $20,298,056. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ADP shares. Mizuho raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of ADP stock traded down $1.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $306.92. 1,515,441 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,636,188. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $227.12 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.06 billion, a PE ratio of 32.76, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $291.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $267.31.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.77 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.08 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.54 per share. This is a positive change from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio 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.