Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $663.87 Million Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lessened its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,275,927 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 44,104 shares during the period. Automatic Data Processing makes up approximately 0.6% of Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.56% of Automatic Data Processing worth $663,865,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at about $708,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 5.8% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 280,961 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $77,750,000 after acquiring an additional 15,340 shares during the period. Bath Savings Trust Co raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 99,299 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,068,000 after acquiring an additional 1,951 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 529,690 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $146,581,000 after acquiring an additional 22,766 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 667,068 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $194,117,000 after purchasing an additional 51,828 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of ADP opened at $302.41 on Thursday. 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 company has a market cap of $123.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.53, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $303.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $295.96. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $231.27 and a 52-week high of $322.84.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released 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 return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. Analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.04%. 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 firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $929,007.90. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on ADP. UBS Group upped their target price 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. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. 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. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $302.30.

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.