World Investment Advisors Buys 17,434 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Key Points

• World Investment Advisors increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 164% in the fourth quarter, buying 17,434 additional shares and lifting its total holding to 28,062 shares worth about $7.2 million.
• Several large institutional investors also added to ADP, and institutions now own 80.03% of the company’s shares, showing continued heavy ownership from professional investors.
• ADP reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $3.37 per share on revenue of $5.94 billion, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Hold” with a target price of $253.50.

World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP - Free Report) by 164.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,062 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 17,434 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $7,219,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.9% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,689,633 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $12,235,907,000 after buying an additional 389,451 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,940,841 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,903,769,000 after buying an additional 133,039 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,576,572 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,977,777,000 after buying an additional 136,876 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 8,393,607 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,159,088,000 after buying an additional 372,413 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,374,504 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,896,944,000 after buying an additional 544,210 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ADP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on 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. Citigroup dropped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $265.00 to $230.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $208.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $300.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $253.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Christopher D'ambrosio sold 543 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.45, for a total transaction of $113,188.35. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 8,912 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,857,706.40. The trade was a 5.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Up 1.0%

NASDAQ ADP opened at $213.81 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.94 and a beta of 0.83. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $206.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $234.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $188.16 and a 52 week high of $329.93.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $3.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.30 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.85 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 68.82% and a net margin of 20.12%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.06 EPS. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.010-11.110 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 11.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Automatic Data Processing's payout ratio is 63.43%.

Automatic Data Processing declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire up to 5.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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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