Diversify Advisory Services LLC Cuts Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Diversify Advisory Services LLC cut its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 49.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,146 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 4,132 shares during the quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $1,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter valued at $314,000. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 28.5% during the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,458 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,258,000 after buying an additional 2,096 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 5.7% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 68,079 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,250,000 after buying an additional 3,682 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.8% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 120,769 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,826,000 after buying an additional 4,427 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 8.6% during the second quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 106,152 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,337,000 after acquiring an additional 8,424 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

ADP stock opened at $296.18 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $297.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $280.60. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12-month low of $231.27 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The company has a market capitalization of $120.68 billion, a PE ratio of 31.61, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.79. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.91.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP David Foskett sold 1,067 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.15, for a total value of $305,322.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,140 shares in the company, valued at $1,756,961. The trade was a 14.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,129 shares of company stock valued at $12,604,872. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Automatic Data Processing 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.