Legal & General Group Plc Acquires 84,210 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 3.0%, buying 84,210 shares to hold 2,882,264 shares worth about $845.94 million (0.71% of ADP).
• ADP beat quarterly expectations with $2.62 EPS (vs. $2.57 est.) and $5.36B revenue (up 6.2%), and set FY2026 guidance of 10.091–11.011 EPS.
• The company announced a capital-return push with a $6.0 billion share buyback authorization and a quarterly dividend of $1.70 (annualized $6.80, ~3.0% yield).

Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,882,264 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 84,210 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.71% of Automatic Data Processing worth $845,944,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter worth $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter worth $28,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ADP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $230.00 price target (down from $245.00) on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $270.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 9th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $303.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $290.00.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $223.04 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $238.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $262.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.45 and a beta of 0.86. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $203.26 and a 1 year high of $329.93.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.96% and a return on equity of 68.44%. The company had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.35 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.091-11.011 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio is 65.38%.

Automatic Data Processing announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 14th that permits the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 5.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP David Kwon sold 806 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.80, for a total value of $213,428.80. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 11,187 shares in the company, valued at $2,962,317.60. This trade represents a 6.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,000 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.18, for a total value of $234,180.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 15,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,585,295.80. The trade was a 6.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,515 shares of company stock valued at $887,074. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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