Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Decreases Stock Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lowered its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 245,085 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,262 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.06% of Automatic Data Processing worth $71,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ADP. AMG National Trust Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 11,334 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,318,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.1% during the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $482,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Aspiriant LLC lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,372 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $694,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Riversedge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 916 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ADP. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.18.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This trade represents a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $306.45 on Monday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $231.27 and a 52-week high of $322.84. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $302.08 and a 200-day moving average of $293.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.96, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) 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, analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 currently 64.23%.

About Automatic Data Processing

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.