Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Bought by China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 110.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,172 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,711 shares during the quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $1,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ADP. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter worth $27,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 230.3% in the 1st quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC now owns 109 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the first quarter worth about $36,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ADP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $267.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $277.64.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total value of $228,927.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,946. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Maria Black sold 19,147 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.38, for a total transaction of $5,253,553.86. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 92,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,464,384.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total value of $228,927.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,946. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 58,817 shares of company stock valued at $15,999,208 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $286.44 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $117.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.97, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $205.53 and a 12 month high of $294.18. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $279.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $258.84.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 89.20%. The business had revenue of $4.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

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.