Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Sold by Fiduciary Trust Co

Fiduciary Trust Co trimmed its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,517 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 3,100 shares during the quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $30,010,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at about $455,993,000. Winslow Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at about $396,714,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,136,763 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,796,415,000 after acquiring an additional 1,299,390 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at about $342,942,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 41,710.7% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,087,814 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ADP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut Automatic Data Processing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays lifted 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $303.55.

Insider Transactions at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 473 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,218,112.80. This trade represents a 6.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total value of $458,070.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,073 shares in the company, valued at $3,686,852.74. This trade represents a 11.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,451 shares of company stock valued at $743,024. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of ADP traded up $0.92 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $308.01. The company had a trading volume of 851,684 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,692,150. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $231.27 and a 1 year high of $322.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $297.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $299.31.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.09. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. The business had revenue of $5.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.88 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.05%.

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.