Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 623 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Securian Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,931 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 623 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $6,420,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Liberty Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Automatic Data Processing by 49.6% in the 4th quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,684 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,371,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its position in Automatic Data Processing by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 12,410 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,633,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Austin Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Austin Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,204 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $357,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at $181,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,487 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $728,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $292.44 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $119.16 billion, a PE ratio of 30.49, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $231.27 and a 1-year high of $322.84. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $302.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $294.33.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. Research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 64.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.18.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,478 shares of company stock worth $1,617,241 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.