Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Reduces Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. decreased its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 3.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 905,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 33,560 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing accounts for approximately 1.3% of Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned approximately 0.22% of Automatic Data Processing worth $265,656,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hendershot Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.6% during the third quarter. Hendershot Investments Inc. now owns 68,735 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $20,174,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 58.4% in the third quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 30,138 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,846,000 after purchasing an additional 11,111 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,562 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,335,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 78,376 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,003,000 after buying an additional 3,267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 852,854 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $250,313,000 after buying an additional 11,223 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ADP opened at $214.36 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $242.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $265.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.31 billion, a PE ratio of 20.61 and a beta of 0.86. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $203.26 and a 52-week high of $329.93.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.34 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 68.44% and a net margin of 19.96%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.35 EPS. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.091-11.011 EPS. Analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 14th that allows the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 5.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.38%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 543 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.29, for a total transaction of $142,423.47. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 9,998 shares in the company, valued at $2,622,375.42. This trade represents a 5.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP David Kwon sold 806 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.80, for a total transaction of $213,428.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 11,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,962,317.60. This represents a 6.72% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,515 shares of company stock valued at $887,074. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ADP shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $270.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Automatic Data Processing in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $306.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $311.00 to $274.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating and set a $230.00 price target (down from $245.00) on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $290.00.

Automatic Data Processing Company Profile

Automatic Data Processing, Inc (ADP) is a global provider of cloud-based human capital management (HCM) and payroll solutions. Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Roseland, New Jersey, ADP began as a payroll processing company and has evolved into a diversified provider of workforce management, HR, benefits administration, tax and compliance services, and analytics for employers of all sizes.

ADP’s product portfolio includes payroll processing and tax filing, time and attendance systems, benefits administration, talent management, and HR outsourcing.