Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Purchased by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 6.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 120,125 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,767 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $28,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. BlueSpruce Investments LP acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter valued at approximately $365,757,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $308,321,000. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,543,317 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $825,487,000 after purchasing an additional 649,791 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 27.7% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,715,382 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $678,601,000 after purchasing an additional 589,831 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 238.1% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 784,003 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $195,797,000 after purchasing an additional 552,096 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total value of $7,164,724.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares in the company, valued at $23,959,908.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total value of $7,164,724.32. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,959,908.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total value of $228,927.60. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,946. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock traded up $2.55 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $275.91. 1,548,080 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,366,105. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $253.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $248.98. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $205.53 and a 1 year high of $276.77. The company has a market capitalization of $112.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $4.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.74 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 89.20%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on ADP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $282.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $265.36.

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.