Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Purchases 64 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. grew its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,328 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 64 shares during the quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $294.18 on Thursday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $231.27 and a 12 month high of $322.84. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $302.30 and its 200-day moving average is $294.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $119.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.68, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. Equities research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS 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. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.23%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total value of $144,832.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,218,112.80. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,951 shares of company stock worth $1,762,074. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Automatic Data Processing Company 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.