Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Purchased by Canton Hathaway LLC

Canton Hathaway LLC increased its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 593 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $174,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares in the company, valued at $20,077,721.04. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the company’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 value of $704,869.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $929,007.90. This trade represents a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,478 shares of company stock worth $1,617,241 over the last 90 days. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

ADP stock opened at $312.20 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $299.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $290.89. The stock has a market cap of $127.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.55, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $231.27 and a fifty-two week high of $314.06. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on ADP. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $293.55.

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.