Veritas Asset Management LLP Lowers Stock Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Veritas Asset Management LLP lowered its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,408,765 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 41,093 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing comprises about 2.4% of Veritas Asset Management LLP’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest position. Veritas Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $328,200,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Heritage Investment Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Heritage Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $513,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 5,254 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,224,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. now owns 8,863 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,065,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC now owns 2,720 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $634,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 4,580 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,067,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Down 2.2 %

Automatic Data Processing stock traded down $5.45 during trading on Monday, reaching $246.87. 2,339,725 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,680,870. The company’s 50-day moving average is $245.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $242.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $205.53 and a 52-week high of $256.84. The firm has a market cap of $101.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.16, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.78.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $5.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ADP. StockNews.com upgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $254.00 to $250.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $265.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $255.42.

About Automatic Data Processing

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.