Ascent Group LLC Sells 1,262 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC decreased its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. by 7.2%, selling 1,262 shares and leaving it with 16,354 shares valued at approximately $5.04 million.
• Barrett & Company Inc. and Creative Capital Management Investments LLC both increased their holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 148.0% and 42.4% respectively during the same quarter.
• Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.811-11.011 EPS, with analysts predicting 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Ascent Group LLC decreased its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 16,354 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,262 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $5,044,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 148.0% in the second quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 248 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC increased its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 42.4% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 762 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $235,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,629 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $502,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 8.4% in the 2nd quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 70,309 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $21,684,000 after buying an additional 5,476 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verus Financial Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $200,000. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ADP has been the subject of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Automatic Data Processing to a "hold" rating and set a $340.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $311.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Dbs Bank raised shares of Automatic Data Processing to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $305.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $316.70.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

ADP stock opened at $291.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $272.62 and a 52 week high of $329.93. The firm's fifty day moving average is $299.08 and its 200 day moving average is $303.37. The firm has a market cap of $118.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.82.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.84% and a return on equity of 72.84%. The company had revenue of $5.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. The firm's quarterly 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. Research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.72%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Don Mcguire sold 13,599 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.57, for a total transaction of $4,033,055.43. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 17,684 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,244,543.88. This trade represents a 43.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Joseph Desilva sold 4,614 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.57, for a total transaction of $1,368,373.98. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 17,536 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,200,651.52. This represents a 20.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,516 shares of company stock worth $15,632,410 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ADP? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.