Nuveen LLC Makes New Investment in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has invested $661.77 million in Automatic Data Processing, purchasing 2,165,978 shares and owning approximately 0.53% of the company.
• Automatic Data Processing recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.54 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.0% and a payout ratio of 61.72%.
• Analysts have mixed views on ADP's stock, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target range from $315.00 to $340.00.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 2,165,978 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $661,771,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.53% of Automatic Data Processing as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 34,655.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,901,007 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $886,345,000 after buying an additional 2,892,660 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,299,390 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 902,354 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 128.1% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,585,704 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $484,480,000 after buying an additional 890,440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 811.7% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 637,601 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $194,806,000 after buying an additional 567,664 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of ADP stock traded down $4.09 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $299.63. 1,280,014 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,490,098. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $307.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $305.58. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $259.08 and a 1-year high of $329.93. The company has a market cap of $121.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.05 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 72.84% and a net margin of 19.84%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate 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, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is currently 61.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the subject of several research reports. TD Securities raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $305.00 to $318.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $321.00 to $332.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $314.33.

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.