Analysts Set Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) PT at $302.30

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the ten research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have issued a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $302.30.

ADP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $305.53 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing has a 12-month low of $231.27 and a 12-month high of $322.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $124.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $304.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $296.64.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. On average, research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. 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, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,218,112.80. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,951 shares of company stock worth $1,762,074 in the last 90 days. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter worth approximately $708,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 5.8% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 280,961 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $77,750,000 after purchasing an additional 15,340 shares during the period. Bath Savings Trust Co boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 99,299 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,068,000 after purchasing an additional 1,951 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 529,690 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $146,581,000 after purchasing an additional 22,766 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 667,068 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $194,117,000 after buying an additional 51,828 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

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.