Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Stock Holdings Lowered by Lmcg Investments LLC

Lmcg Investments LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 19.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,222 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 544 shares during the period. Lmcg Investments LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $650,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth $209,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 280,961 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $77,750,000 after buying an additional 15,340 shares during the period. RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth about $470,000. Dash Acquisitions Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 5.6% in the third quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. now owns 52,329 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $15,069,000 after buying an additional 2,781 shares during the period. Finally, DRW Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter worth about $951,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $298.15 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $121.48 billion, a PE ratio of 31.82, a PEG ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.79. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $297.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $281.01. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $309.63.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $4.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.77 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. Automatic Data Processing’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.08 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is 65.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. 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 report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Citigroup increased their price objective 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. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.91.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total value of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares in the company, valued at $20,077,721.04. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 42,129 shares of company stock valued at $12,604,872. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

About Automatic Data Processing

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.