Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) is Accredited Investors Inc.’s 2nd Largest Position

Accredited Investors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 4,431.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,315,295 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,264,202 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing comprises approximately 16.0% of Accredited Investors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Accredited Investors Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $640,712,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP traded up $1.93 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $308.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 217,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,627,790. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $226.09 and a one year high of $309.12. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $284.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $262.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.79 billion, a PE ratio of 32.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. This is a boost 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 yield of 2.00%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is 59.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total transaction of $228,927.60. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,816,946. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total value of $228,927.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,816,946. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $11,692,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,781,200. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 97,792 shares of company stock worth $27,691,708. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing 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.