Farther Finance Advisors LLC Sells 159 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Farther Finance Advisors LLC lowered its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,925 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 159 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $2,905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 346.5% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $294.18 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $119.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.76. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $302.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $294.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $231.27 and a 52-week high of $322.84.

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

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 64.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on ADP. StockNews.com downgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.18.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,007.90. This represents a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.20, for a total transaction of $144,832.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,218,112.80. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,951 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,074. Company 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.