Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Position Reduced by Compass Capital Management Inc.

Compass Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 216,514 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,552 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing comprises approximately 4.2% of Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $63,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Accredited Investors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4,431.5% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 2,315,295 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $640,712,000 after acquiring an additional 2,264,202 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 28,478.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,194,587 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,305,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190,407 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at $160,920,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 332.3% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 623,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $172,497,000 after purchasing an additional 479,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 2.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,334,580 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,098,541,000 after acquiring an additional 424,328 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 1.4 %

ADP opened at $307.32 on Tuesday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $311.67. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $297.16 and its 200-day moving average is $284.84. The company has a market capitalization of $125.22 billion, a PE ratio of 32.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. On average, equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP David Foskett sold 1,067 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.15, for a total transaction of $305,322.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,756,961. The trade was a 14.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,129 shares of company stock worth $12,604,872 in the last three months. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ADP. Barclays upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $293.55.

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.