GWN Securities Inc. Invests $604,000 in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

GWN Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,033 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $604,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $708,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 5.8% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 280,961 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $77,750,000 after acquiring an additional 15,340 shares during the period. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter worth $951,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 18,925 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,236,000 after purchasing an additional 6,399 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 82,736 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $22,896,000 after purchasing an additional 8,846 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

NASDAQ:ADP traded down $1.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $297.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,602,348 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,455,600. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $302.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $295.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $322.84.

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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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.23%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, 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 transaction of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP David Foskett sold 1,004 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.29, for a total value of $290,447.16. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,958 shares in the company, valued at $1,723,589.82. This trade represents a 14.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074 over the last three months. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ADP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays upped 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $296.18.

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.