Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Takes Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 54,416 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $15,929,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtu Financial LLC raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 202.7% during the third quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 4,870 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,348,000 after purchasing an additional 3,261 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $310,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 15,384 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,257,000 after buying an additional 1,001 shares in the last quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 9,935 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,753,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 22.6% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,466 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,066,000 after buying an additional 1,378 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total transaction of $458,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 12,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,686,852.74. This represents a 11.05 % 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. Also, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 473 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,218,112.80. This trade represents a 6.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,775 shares of company stock valued at $1,447,893 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ADP traded up $5.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $304.16. The company had a trading volume of 556,551 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,683,001. 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 twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $322.84. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $298.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $298.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.93 billion, a PE ratio of 31.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.74.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $5.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.49 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.88 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on ADP shares. TD Securities increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $296.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays raised 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 lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $303.55.

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.