Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Sold by Violich Capital Management Inc.

Violich Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 26,514 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 3,011 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing makes up about 1.0% of Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $7,761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Arlington Partners LLC raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Partners LLC now owns 15,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,442,000 after purchasing an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 22,917 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,708,000 after buying an additional 744 shares in the last quarter. NORTHSTAR ASSET MANAGEMENT Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $205,000. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,983 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $873,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ADP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays increased 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. Mizuho boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $293.55.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of ADP stock opened at $306.93 on Tuesday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $311.67. The company has a market capitalization of $125.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.01, a PEG ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $297.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $286.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is currently 64.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $20,077,721.04. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value 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. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,478 shares of company stock worth $1,617,241. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.