GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd Has $259.79 Million Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd trimmed its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 39.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 887,464 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 572,259 shares during the quarter. Automatic Data Processing accounts for approximately 4.2% of GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd owned about 0.22% of Automatic Data Processing worth $259,787,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

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Insider Activity

In other news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

ADP traded up $3.02 during trading on Thursday, hitting $305.43. The stock had a trading volume of 1,373,585 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,465,299. The firm has a market cap of $124.45 billion, a PE ratio of 31.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $231.27 and a 12 month high of $322.84. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $303.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $296.02.

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, topping 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%. Analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.