Western Pacific Wealth Management LP Increases Stock Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Western Pacific Wealth Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 150.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 500 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $138,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of ADP stock opened at $304.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $282.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $261.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.21 billion, a PE ratio of 32.53, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.28 and a 52-week high of $306.71.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.08 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 59.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Automatic Data Processing news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at $9,899,862.45. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the vice president now owns 88,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,959,908.96. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,899,862.45. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 58,817 shares of company stock worth $15,999,208. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ADP. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup boosted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.91.

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.