Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Acquired by Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 24,288 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 385 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $7,110,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ADP shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Mizuho increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $293.55.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,077,721.04. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $929,007.90. The trade was a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,478 shares of company stock worth $1,617,241 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

ADP opened at $308.15 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $125.56 billion, a PE ratio of 32.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $297.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $288.00. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $231.27 and a fifty-two week high of $311.67.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is currently 64.23%.

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.