Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP Shares Sold by Northstar Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Northstar Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. by 3.2% in the 1st quarter, maintaining it as their 2nd largest holding valued at approximately $16.79 million.
• Automatic Data Processing recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.54 per share, reflecting a 2.0% yield and a payout ratio of 61.72%.
• The company surpassed analyst expectations with $5.13 billion in revenue for the last quarter and earnings per share of $2.26, beating the consensus estimate by $0.03.

Northstar Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 3.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 54,957 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,809 shares during the period. Automatic Data Processing accounts for approximately 5.0% of Northstar Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Northstar Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $16,791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,949,884 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $12,511,418,000 after purchasing an additional 218,614 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,174,419 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,807,438,000 after purchasing an additional 902,354 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 26.9% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,299,390 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,031,713 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,231,809,000 after purchasing an additional 145,161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,830,078 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,115,909,000 after purchasing an additional 549,132 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on ADP shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Automatic Data Processing to a "hold" rating and set a $340.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $305.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $321.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $323.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $314.33.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP traded up $3.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $305.72. 1,227,046 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,530,943. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $305.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $305.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market cap of $123.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.81. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $263.42 and a fifty-two week high of $329.93.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.05 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 72.84% and a net margin of 19.84%.Automatic Data Processing's revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.09 EPS. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.811-11.011 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is currently 61.72%.

Automatic Data Processing 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.