State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Trims Stock Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D sold 13,516 shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP), decreasing its stake by 9.0%, leaving it with 136,845 shares worth approximately $41.81 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on ADP's outlook, with target price adjustments ranging from $298.00 to $340.00 and an average rating of "Hold".
• Automatic Data Processing announced a quarterly dividend of $1.54, representing a yearly yield of 2.0%, with the payment scheduled for October 1st.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lessened its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 9.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 136,845 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 13,516 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $41,810,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. von Borstel & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Main Street Group LTD raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 50.7% during the fourth quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 113 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Abound Wealth Management raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 58.1% during the first quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 117 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Banque de Luxembourg S.A. acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of Automatic Data Processing stock traded up $0.86 during trading on Monday, reaching $302.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,156,707 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,520,591. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $305.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $305.62. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12-month low of $262.88 and a 12-month high of $329.93. The company has a market capitalization of $122.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.03. The business 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 company's quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.09 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders 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 yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is presently 61.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on ADP. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $323.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 13th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $321.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $305.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $314.33.

Automatic Data Processing Company 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.