Meeder Asset Management Inc. Acquires 135 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 210.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 199 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $58,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC increased its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 121.8% during the 4th quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC now owns 122 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $306.54 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $124.90 billion, a PE ratio of 31.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company’s fifty day moving average is $304.22 and its 200-day moving average is $296.84. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.27 and a 52 week high of $322.84.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued 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 net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. Equities research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is 64.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were 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 owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total value of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares in the company, valued at $20,077,721.04. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 5,951 shares of company stock worth $1,762,074. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ADP. Barclays boosted 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. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $302.30.

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.