Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Receives $254.58 Consensus PT from Brokerages

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the ten analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $254.58.

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho boosted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $265.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $217.00 to $243.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $267.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.1 %

ADP stock opened at $244.08 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $247.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $239.13. The company has a market cap of $100.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.41, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Automatic Data Processing has a 12 month low of $201.46 and a 12 month high of $256.84.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.65 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 95.22% and a net margin of 19.14%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Don Mcguire sold 11,333 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total value of $2,776,585.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 19,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,876,970. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Don Mcguire sold 11,333 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $2,776,585.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 19,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,876,970. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 368 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.01, for a total transaction of $90,899.68. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,018,996.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,162 shares of company stock valued at $3,741,859. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. Marotta Asset Management grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marotta Asset Management now owns 1,395 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $336,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 34.7% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 159 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Investment Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Heritage Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $513,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 5,254 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,224,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Argus Investors Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. now owns 8,863 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,065,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

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.