Stokes Capital Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Key Points

• Stokes Capital Advisors cut its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 19% in the first quarter, selling 4,718 shares and ending the period with 20,049 shares worth about $4.07 million.
• ADP reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $3.37 versus $3.30 expected and revenue of $5.94 billion, with revenue up 7% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.70 per share to be paid July 1, and analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Hold” with an average price target of $244.29.

Stokes Capital Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 19.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,049 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,718 shares during the period. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $4,074,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 6,493.0% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,468,180 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $892,120,000 after acquiring an additional 3,415,576 shares during the period. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 950.1% in the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 3,563,180 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $916,557,000 after purchasing an additional 3,223,855 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at about $721,738,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Automatic Data Processing by 47.8% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,830,294 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,004,691,000 after purchasing an additional 2,208,927 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in Automatic Data Processing by 133.3% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,687,793 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $434,151,000 after purchasing an additional 964,405 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of ADP stock opened at $216.31 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $188.16 and a 1-year high of $315.98. The firm has a market cap of $86.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a 50-day moving average of $216.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $226.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

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

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Automatic Data Processing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ADP shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $214.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, May 18th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $311.00 to $274.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Argus decreased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $300.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $244.29.

Automatic Data Processing 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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