Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Sold by Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 50,316 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 45 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $12,566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $308,321,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 22,539.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 934,326 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $217,670,000 after buying an additional 930,199 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,543,317 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $825,487,000 after buying an additional 649,791 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,576,575 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $855,287,000 after buying an additional 553,946 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,596,142 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,224,713,000 after buying an additional 412,434 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP traded down $1.18 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $234.49. 412,348 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,688,619. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.97 billion, a PE ratio of 26.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $245.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $243.86. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $205.53 and a 12 month high of $256.84.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.79 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 93.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.52 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 62.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $254.00 to $250.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $265.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $253.00 to $251.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $255.42.

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.