Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Receives $277.64 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $285.09.

A number of brokerages recently commented on ADP. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $288.18 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $281.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $259.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Automatic Data Processing has a one year low of $211.52 and a one year high of $294.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.53 billion, a PE ratio of 30.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. Automatic Data Processing’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 59.77%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 92,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,464,384.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 92,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,464,384.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 58,817 shares of company stock valued at $15,999,208 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 1,054 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,902,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 5,698 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,360,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 923 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,645 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,302,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.