Millstone Evans Group LLC Buys New Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,527 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,032,000. Automatic Data Processing makes up about 0.7% of Millstone Evans Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ADP. AMG National Trust Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 11,334 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,318,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,372 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 916 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gilbert & Cook Inc. grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 1,842 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $539,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,077,721.04. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their position. 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. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report 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 research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.18.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

ADP opened at $295.32 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $303.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $295.22. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $231.27 and a 52-week high of $322.84. The company has a market cap of $120.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.79, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

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 for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The company 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 $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis 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 is presently 64.23%.

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.