Northstar Advisory Group LLC Acquires New Shares in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Northstar Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,116 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $341,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Main Street Group LTD increased its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 50.7% in the 4th quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 113 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC increased its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 121.8% in the 4th quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC now owns 122 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total value of $458,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,686,852.74. This trade represents a 11.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 478 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.14, for a total value of $140,120.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,158,682.96. The trade was a 6.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, June 5th. TD Securities raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $305.64.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock traded down $2.16 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $312.36. 1,323,495 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,702,954. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $329.93. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $306.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $302.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $126.79 billion, a PE ratio of 32.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $5.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.88 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.