Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Purchases 2,346 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 11.1% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 23,390 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,346 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $5,583,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 105.2% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,017 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at $308,321,000. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 22.6% during the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 5,231 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,219,000 after acquiring an additional 966 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 539,551 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $125,704,000 after purchasing an additional 3,666 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter worth $793,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total value of $2,479,748.35. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at $9,899,862.45. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total value of $228,927.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,410 shares in the company, valued at $2,816,946. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,899,862.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 58,817 shares of company stock valued at $15,999,208. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ADP opened at $279.41 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $262.31 and its 200-day moving average is $250.94. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $205.53 and a 1-year high of $281.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $114.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 89.20%. The firm had revenue of $4.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $282.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $267.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $265.36.

Automatic Data Processing 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.