Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Acquired by Avantax Planning Partners Inc.

Avantax Planning Partners Inc. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,889 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 523 shares during the period. Avantax Planning Partners Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $4,651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth $35,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,066,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,437 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $951,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Sheets Smith Wealth Management acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth approximately $534,000. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 6.0% in the third quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,836 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,383,000 after buying an additional 894 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ADP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group upped their price objective on 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, 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.18.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $302.99 on Tuesday. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $231.27 and a 52-week high of $322.84. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $302.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $294.17. The company has a market capitalization of $123.46 billion, a PE ratio of 31.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. Equities research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares in the company, valued at $929,007.90. The trade was a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total value of $210,236.39. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,077,721.04. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.