Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,490,000 shares, an increase of 5.4% from the November 15th total of 5,210,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,630,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.4 days. Currently, 1.4% of the company's shares are short sold.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
ADP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $289.91.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Automatic Data Processing
Insider Activity
In related news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company's stock.
Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.0 %
ADP traded up $0.05 during trading on Monday, hitting $296.81. The company had a trading volume of 2,579,641 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,649,407. The company has a market cap of $120.94 billion, a PE ratio of 31.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Automatic Data Processing has a 1-year low of $227.12 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The business has a 50-day moving average of $297.02 and a 200-day moving average of $271.98.
Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. The business had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.08 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.
Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.77%.
About Automatic Data Processing
(
Get Free Report)
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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