Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $313.23 and last traded at $312.39, with a volume of 536955 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $309.95.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ADP shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $293.55.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 1.1 %

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $297.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $289.42. The company has a market capitalization of $127.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 80.86%. Equities analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid 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 dividend yield of 1.97%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.23%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total transaction of $704,869.20. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This trade represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at about $22,605,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth about $132,000. Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,986,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,493,000. Finally, Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,348,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.