Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Sold by Sheets Smith Wealth Management

Sheets Smith Wealth Management lowered its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 19.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,981 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 470 shares during the period. Sheets Smith Wealth Management’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $605,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ADP. Embree Financial Group acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 1st quarter worth approximately $208,000. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 36.0% during the first quarter. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp now owns 1,525 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 493.9% during the first quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 196 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. FORM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter valued at $244,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 175,475 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $53,613,000 after purchasing an additional 11,641 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ADP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, June 5th. TD Securities lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group cut their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $323.00 to $315.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $321.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $307.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 478 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.14, for a total transaction of $140,120.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,364 shares in the company, valued at $2,158,682.96. This trade represents a 6.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total transaction of $458,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 12,073 shares in the company, valued at $3,686,852.74. This represents a 11.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $311.40 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $310.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $303.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.27 and a 52 week high of $329.93. The firm has a market cap of $126.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.09. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.79% and a return on equity of 77.33%. The company had revenue of $5.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.88 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.05%.

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.