Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Short Interest Update

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,490,000 shares, an increase of 5.4% from the November 15th total of 5,210,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,630,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ADP shares. Barclays raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective 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. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

NASDAQ ADP opened at $295.57 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $297.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $272.73. Automatic Data Processing has a 12-month low of $227.12 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.43 billion, a PE ratio of 31.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.08 earnings per share. Automatic Data Processing’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 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. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. This is an increase 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 (DPR) is presently 65.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 23.8% in the second quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 26,610 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,352,000 after purchasing an additional 5,114 shares during the last quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 280,961 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $77,750,000 after buying an additional 15,340 shares during the last quarter. RIA Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $470,000. Finally, Dash Acquisitions Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 5.6% during the third quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. now owns 52,329 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $15,069,000 after buying an additional 2,781 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.