Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Sold by Veritas Asset Management LLP

Veritas Asset Management LLP reduced its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 98.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 26,791 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,320,267 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing accounts for 0.1% of Veritas Asset Management LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Veritas Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $7,843,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 1,054 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $482,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Aspiriant LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,372 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $694,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,466,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Riversedge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 916 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $268,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $312.20 on Tuesday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $231.27 and a 1 year high of $314.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $127.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.55, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79. The company’s fifty day moving average is $299.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $290.89.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. Analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Cowen increased 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $293.55.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,077,721.04. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.21% 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.