Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Holdings Lowered by Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 25.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 243 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 81 shares during the quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $54,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ADP. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 94,265.5% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,770,728 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,617,256,000 after acquiring an additional 6,763,553 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $531,416,000. Gateway Advisory LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 22,163.0% during the first quarter. Gateway Advisory LLC now owns 1,740,744 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,741,000 after purchasing an additional 1,732,925 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 902.1% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,023,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $227,773,000 after purchasing an additional 921,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 39.8% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 3,010,023 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $733,450,000 after purchasing an additional 856,540 shares in the last quarter. 79.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on ADP shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Friday, June 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $230.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $240.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Tuesday, September 5th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $267.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $235.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $249.57.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $249.37 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $243.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $225.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.46 and a 1-year high of $274.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $102.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.41, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.81.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 26th. The business services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.06. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 18.94% and a return on equity of 107.15%. The business had revenue of $4.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.50 earnings per share. Automatic Data Processing’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 7th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is currently 60.98%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, CEO Maria Black sold 17,326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.03, for a total transaction of $4,418,649.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 70,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,051,533.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Automatic Data Processing news, insider Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 58,864 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.42, for a total value of $14,740,722.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 44,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,233,590.78. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 17,326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.03, for a total transaction of $4,418,649.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 70,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,051,533.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 117,835 shares of company stock worth $29,763,730 in the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Automatic Data Processing 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.