Aviva PLC Acquires 26,141 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Aviva PLC boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 962,810 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 26,141 shares during the period. Automatic Data Processing accounts for approximately 0.7% of Aviva PLC's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Aviva PLC owned 0.24% of Automatic Data Processing worth $281,843,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at about $455,993,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $342,942,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 41,710.7% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,090,422 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $319,199,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,814 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 3,120,039 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $910,972,000 after purchasing an additional 449,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1,029.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 420,257 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $132,429,000 after buying an additional 383,057 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

ADP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing 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 report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $302.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP David Foskett sold 1,067 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.15, for a total value of $305,322.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,756,961. This trade represents a 14.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This trade represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,364 shares of company stock valued at $1,613,094. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ADP traded down $4.90 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $289.80. The company had a trading volume of 1,406,820 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,657,947. The firm has a market cap of $118.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.25, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $302.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $297.29. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is 64.23%.

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.