Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Stake Increased by Sound Income Strategies LLC

Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 66.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 821 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 327 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $240,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.4% during the third quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 1,054 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.1% during the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $482,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Aspiriant LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,372 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $694,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% during the third quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,902,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Riversedge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 916 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ADP shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, January 19th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.91.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, 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 value of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares in the company, valued at $9,781,200. This represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 42,129 shares of company stock worth $12,604,872. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $297.10 on Friday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $309.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market capitalization of $121.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.71, a PEG ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $297.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $281.66.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $4.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.08 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 65.74%.

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.