Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group Trims Stock Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group reduced its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 23.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,121 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,233 shares during the quarter. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $1,206,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at $342,942,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 41,710.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,090,422 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $319,199,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,814 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter valued at about $160,920,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 332.3% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 623,341 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $172,497,000 after buying an additional 479,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its position in Automatic Data Processing by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 3,120,039 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $910,972,000 after buying an additional 449,431 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

NASDAQ ADP traded down $3.63 on Thursday, hitting $290.55. 2,061,672 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,505,803. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $302.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $294.30. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $231.27 and a fifty-two week high of $322.84. The firm has a market cap of $118.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.30, 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 (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. On average, research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given 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 2.12%. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is 64.23%.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total value of $210,236.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68,856 shares in the company, valued at $20,077,721.04. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. Insiders have sold 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074 in the last quarter. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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