Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. Makes New $1.55 Million Investment in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 6,005 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,545,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.5%

ADP stock opened at $209.71 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $84.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16 and a beta of 0.86. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $203.26 and a fifty-two week high of $329.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $228.22 and a 200-day moving average of $255.72.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.34 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 68.44% and a net margin of 19.96%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.35 EPS. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.091-11.011 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to repurchase up to 5.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 65.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP David Foskett sold 266 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.00, for a total transaction of $63,042.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 10,954 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,596,098. This represents a 2.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 543 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.45, for a total transaction of $113,188.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 8,912 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,857,706.40. This trade represents a 5.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,058 shares of company stock worth $1,000,263. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ADP shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target (down from $245.00) on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $306.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $311.00 to $274.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $288.46.

Automatic Data Processing Company Profile

Automatic Data Processing, Inc (ADP) is a global provider of cloud-based human capital management (HCM) and payroll solutions. Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Roseland, New Jersey, ADP began as a payroll processing company and has evolved into a diversified provider of workforce management, HR, benefits administration, tax and compliance services, and analytics for employers of all sizes.

ADP’s product portfolio includes payroll processing and tax filing, time and attendance systems, benefits administration, talent management, and HR outsourcing.