Axecap Investments LLC Acquires New Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Axecap Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,838 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,173,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Main Street Group LTD raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 50.7% during the fourth quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 113 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 121.8% during the 4th quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC now owns 122 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

NASDAQ:ADP traded down $2.61 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $309.75. 1,798,851 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,703,092. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock's 50-day moving average is $306.89 and its 200-day moving average is $302.88. The firm has a market cap of $125.73 billion, a PE ratio of 32.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $329.93.

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. The company had revenue of $5.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.49 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.88 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on ADP. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. TD Securities upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $305.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 478 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.14, for a total transaction of $140,120.92. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,158,682.96. This trade represents a 6.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the firm's 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 approximately $3,686,852.74. The trade was a 11.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.