Prudential PLC Has $31.79 Million Stock Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Key Points

• Prudential PLC reduced its holdings in Automatic Data Processing (ADP) by 15.6%, owning 104,047 shares valued at approximately $31.79 million after selling 19,205 shares in the first quarter.
• ADP recently reported earnings per share of $2.26, beating estimates, with revenue of $5.13 billion, reflecting a 6.3% increase year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.54 per share to be paid on October 1st, with a current dividend yield of 2.0%.

Prudential PLC lowered its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 15.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 104,047 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 19,205 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $31,789,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ADP. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 92.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,026 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,935,000 after purchasing an additional 4,808 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth about $957,000. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 4,016 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,176,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,932,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 16,105 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,715,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $303.72 on Tuesday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $258.63 and a 52-week high of $329.93. The company has a market capitalization of $123.02 billion, a PE ratio of 30.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $307.69 and a 200-day moving average of $305.58.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 72.84% and a net margin of 19.84%. The company had revenue of $5.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is presently 61.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ADP. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $305.00 to $318.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of 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 restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, June 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Automatic Data Processing to a "hold" rating and set a $340.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, TD Securities increased their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $298.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company 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.

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