Mechanics Bank Trust Department Sells 964 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department trimmed its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 4.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,193 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 964 shares during the quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $6,781,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 860,695 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $262,968,000 after purchasing an additional 17,297 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 17.4% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,118 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,869,000 after acquiring an additional 907 shares in the last quarter. Investors Research Corp boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 11.4% during the first quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 421 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the first quarter worth $204,000. Finally, Somerset Trust Co boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 2.5% during the first quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 19,654 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $6,005,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.38, for a total transaction of $458,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 478 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.14, for a total transaction of $140,120.92. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,364 shares in the company, valued at $2,158,682.96. This trade represents a 6.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,451 shares of company stock valued at $743,024 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on ADP. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. TD Securities increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing to $305.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research 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 given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $305.64.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP traded down $0.46 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $325.75. 407,977 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,702,537. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $305.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $302.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $132.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.97, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $231.27 and a 1 year high of $327.99.

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. Equities analysts predict 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 Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is currently 63.05%.

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.