Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Sold by AGF Management Ltd.

AGF Management Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 13.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,743 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 3,797 shares during the quarter. AGF Management Ltd.'s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $6,950,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ADP. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $294.18 on Thursday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $231.27 and a 12 month high of $322.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $302.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $294.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $119.87 billion, a PE ratio of 30.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76.

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Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. Equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is 64.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut Automatic Data Processing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $296.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Automatic Data Processing news, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total value of $210,236.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,077,721.04. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 5,951 shares of company stock worth $1,762,074. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.

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