Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Monday.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on ADP. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and issued a $267.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $265.36.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

NASDAQ:ADP opened at $277.48 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $258.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $250.18. Automatic Data Processing has a 1-year low of $205.53 and a 1-year high of $279.58. The firm has a market cap of $113.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 89.20%. The company had revenue of $4.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.50%.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at $9,899,862.45. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total transaction of $7,164,724.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,959,908.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at $9,899,862.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 58,817 shares of company stock worth $15,999,208. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 14.2% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 801,857 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $200,256,000 after purchasing an additional 99,515 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 70.7% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 638,507 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $152,405,000 after buying an additional 264,466 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 195.1% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 51,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,888,000 after acquiring an additional 34,118 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the first quarter worth approximately $2,924,000. Finally, LVW Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 23.8% in the 1st quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 3,854 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $962,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.