Vest Financial LLC Sells 1,450 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Vest Financial LLC trimmed its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 196,776 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,450 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing comprises approximately 1.0% of Vest Financial LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $57,602,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $305.97 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $231.27 and a fifty-two week high of $311.67. The company has a market capitalization of $124.67 billion, a PE ratio of 31.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $297.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $285.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.

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

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ADP shares. Barclays boosted 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, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $293.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This trade represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,478 shares of company stock worth $1,617,241 in the last three months. 0.21% of the stock is 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.