Erste Asset Management GmbH Takes Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 273,699 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $75,341,000. Automatic Data Processing accounts for about 0.9% of Erste Asset Management GmbH's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned 0.07% of Automatic Data Processing as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 36,741 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,899,862.45. This represents a 20.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,781,200. This trade represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 70,504 shares of company stock valued at $20,298,056. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ADP shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com cut Automatic Data Processing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $289.91.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.0 %

Automatic Data Processing stock traded up $0.01 during trading on Friday, reaching $306.93. The stock had a trading volume of 805,046 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,561,798. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market cap of $125.06 billion, a PE ratio of 32.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $292.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $268.15. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $227.12 and a 52-week high of $309.63.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.08 EPS. The company's revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. This is a positive change from Automatic Data Processing's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.77%.

Automatic Data Processing 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.