Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Position Increased by Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC

Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC raised its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $7,208,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.4 %

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $297.51 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $302.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $295.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. 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 $121.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing 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 stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised 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 note on Thursday, January 30th. 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. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.18.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,218,112.80. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074 over the last quarter. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.