Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 20,201 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 4.0% in the first quarter, buying 20,201 additional shares and lifting its total holdings to 519,024 shares valued at about $105.5 million.
• ADP reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $3.37 versus $3.30 expected and revenue of $5.94 billion versus $5.85 billion estimated. Revenue rose 7% year over year, and the company reiterated FY 2026 EPS guidance of $11.01 to $11.11.
• Analysts are mixed on the stock, with several target price cuts and a consensus rating of “Hold.” MarketBeat says the average price target is $248.64, close to the stock’s recent trading level.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 519,024 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 20,201 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Automatic Data Processing worth $105,455,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northcape Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,577 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,692,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 4,027 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,036,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,885 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $485,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 850 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blossom Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Blossom Wealth Management now owns 1,470 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ:ADP opened at $247.47 on Thursday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $188.16 and a 52 week high of $315.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm's fifty day moving average is $226.31 and its 200-day moving average is $224.66. The firm has a market cap of $98.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.08 and a beta of 0.83.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.30 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.85 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 20.12% and a return on equity of 68.82%. Automatic Data Processing's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.06 earnings per share. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.010-11.110 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 11.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ADP shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $265.00 to $230.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $300.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $214.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $248.64.

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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