Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Short Interest Update

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,080,000 shares, a growth of 10.7% from the November 30th total of 5,490,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,680,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.6 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $292.73 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $298.30 and a 200-day moving average of $276.10. The company has a market cap of $119.27 billion, a PE ratio of 31.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing has a 1-year low of $231.27 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.77 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.08 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This is a boost from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 65.74%.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.4% during the third quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 1,054 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its position in Automatic Data Processing by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $482,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,902,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% in the second quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 5,698 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,360,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Austin Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.4% during the third quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 923 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ADP shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. 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 research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $289.91.

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.