Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Position Increased by Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,375 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $2,744,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in 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 period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter valued at $35,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ADP shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays increased 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. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target 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. Finally, 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. Two research 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, Automatic Data Processing currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $293.55.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 1.0 %

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $305.97 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $124.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.91, a PEG ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.79. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $297.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $286.66. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $311.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $929,007.90. The trade was a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % 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 valued at $1,617,241 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.