Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Bought by Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 10.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,210 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Evolution Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 106.0% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 173 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 1.8 %

NASDAQ:ADP traded up $4.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $252.32. 1,649,966 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,674,880. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $245.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $242.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $205.53 and a fifty-two week high of $256.84. The firm has a market cap of $103.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.68, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.79 by $0.09. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 93.09%. The company had revenue of $5.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on ADP. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $253.00 to $251.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Mizuho upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $265.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Barclays upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $254.00 to $250.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $255.42.

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.