Qsemble Capital Management LP Sells 14,614 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Qsemble Capital Management LP lessened its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 94.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 865 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 14,614 shares during the quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $239,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

NASDAQ ADP opened at $306.92 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $291.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $267.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.12 and a fifty-two week high of $309.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.77%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $9,899,862.45. The trade was a 20.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,781,200. The trade was a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 70,504 shares of company stock worth $20,298,056 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ADP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.91.

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.