Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has received an average rating of "Hold" from twelve brokerages, with nine recommending hold and three recommending buy.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.54 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.2%.
• Insiders have sold a total of 52,516 shares, valued at approximately $15.6 million, over the past ninety days.

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Hold" from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $316.70.

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Dbs Bank raised Automatic Data Processing to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $305.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $315.00 to $290.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $311.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 597 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.90, for a total transaction of $177,249.30. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 10,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,129,622.90. The trade was a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Don Mcguire sold 13,599 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.57, for a total value of $4,033,055.43. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 17,684 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,244,543.88. This represents a 43.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 52,516 shares of company stock valued at $15,632,410 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ADP. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2,600.0% in the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 81 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Solstein Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.6%

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $285.92 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Automatic Data Processing has a 12 month low of $272.62 and a 12 month high of $329.93. The firm has a market cap of $115.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.65, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $296.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $302.82.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 72.84% and a net margin of 19.84%.The company had revenue of $5.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. Automatic Data Processing's revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.811-11.011 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th were issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is currently 61.72%.

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.

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