Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP Shares Sold by Forsta AP Fonden

Key Points

• Forsta AP Fonden cut its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 9,000 shares and leaving it with 139,500 shares valued at about $35.9 million.
• Wall Street is mostly cautious on ADP: the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $249, after several firms adjusted ratings and price objectives.
• ADP reported solid quarterly results and a dividend, beating earnings and revenue estimates, raising FY2026 EPS guidance, and announcing a quarterly dividend of $1.70 per share, or $6.80 annually for a 3.1% yield.

Forsta AP Fonden reduced its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 139,500 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 9,000 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $35,884,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Coston McIsaac & Partners raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 335 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,577 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,692,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC now owns 867 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $254,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,179 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,455,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 4,027 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,036,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ADP. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Automatic Data Processing from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $214.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, May 18th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $332.00 to $305.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $311.00 to $274.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. TD Cowen upgraded Automatic Data Processing to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $249.00.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

NASDAQ ADP opened at $221.84 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $207.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $230.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.69 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $188.16 and a fifty-two week high of $329.93.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.30 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.85 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 68.82% and a net margin of 20.12%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.06 earnings per share. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.010-11.110 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 11.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is 63.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 543 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.45, for a total transaction of $113,188.35. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 8,912 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,857,706.40. The trade was a 5.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Company Profile

Automatic Data Processing, Inc (ADP) is a global provider of cloud-based human capital management (HCM) and payroll solutions. Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Roseland, New Jersey, ADP began as a payroll processing company and has evolved into a diversified provider of workforce management, HR, benefits administration, tax and compliance services, and analytics for employers of all sizes.

ADP's product portfolio includes payroll processing and tax filing, time and attendance systems, benefits administration, talent management, and HR outsourcing.

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