Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Acquired by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 141.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,531 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 9,686 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $4,839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $455,993,000. Winslow Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter worth about $396,714,000. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake 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. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at $342,942,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 41,710.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,090,422 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $319,199,000 after buying an additional 1,087,814 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 473 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total value of $144,832.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,218,112.80. The trade was a 6.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total transaction of $458,070.00. Following the sale, the vice president now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,451 shares of company stock worth $743,024 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of ADP stock traded up $1.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $325.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,924,935 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,706,550. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $231.27 and a 1-year high of $327.99. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $303.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $301.62. The company has a market capitalization of $132.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.88 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is currently 63.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ADP shares. TD Securities increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Automatic Data Processing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $305.64.

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.