Signature Wealth Management Group Has $390,000 Stock Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Signature Wealth Management Group cut its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,331 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 51 shares during the period. Signature Wealth Management Group’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $390,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. SlateStone Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 43,620 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,769,000 after buying an additional 457 shares during the last quarter. GWN Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth $604,000. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC now owns 77,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $22,801,000 after buying an additional 786 shares during the last quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 2,874 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $841,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Finally, one8zero8 LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth $966,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of ADP stock opened at $291.76 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $231.27 and a 12 month high of $322.84. The stock has a market cap of $118.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.42, a P/E/G 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. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $302.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $294.58.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on ADP. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group upped their price objective 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. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.18.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total value of $144,832.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,218,112.80. This trade represents a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.