Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 2,071 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,428,125 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,071 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.60% of Automatic Data Processing worth $710,795,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AMG National Trust Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 11,334 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,318,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Aspiriant LLC raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,372 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $694,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Riversedge Advisors LLC boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 916 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 1,842 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $539,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on ADP. StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $302.30.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 7,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,218,112.80. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,775 shares of company stock valued at $1,447,893 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of ADP stock opened at $293.28 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $301.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $298.11. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $231.27 and a 12 month high of $322.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $119.50 billion, a PE ratio of 30.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.74.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. Analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.23%.

Automatic Data Processing Company Profile

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.