Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on ADP. Mizuho upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays upped their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on 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, Citigroup increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $291.69 on Friday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $118.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.13, a PEG ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $298.43 and its 200 day moving average is $276.85. Automatic Data Processing has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $309.63.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly 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 the consensus estimate of $4.77 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.08 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. This is a positive change from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.74%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of Automatic Data Processing 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,781,200. The trade was a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,347 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,443,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 39.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,495 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $438,000 after buying an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. IMPACTfolio LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at $204,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 529,690 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $146,581,000 after buying an additional 22,766 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.4% during the third quarter. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. now owns 3,796 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,050,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.