Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 4.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 529,690 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,766 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Automatic Data Processing worth $146,581,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ADP. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.4% during the first quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,316 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 10.8% in the first quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 16,991 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,243,000 after buying an additional 1,654 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 49.2% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 24,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,996,000 after acquiring an additional 7,921 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 50.7% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 17,304 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,322,000 after acquiring an additional 5,818 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 195.1% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 51,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,888,000 after acquiring an additional 34,118 shares during the period. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $304.85 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.28 and a 12 month high of $306.71. The company’s fifty day moving average is $282.92 and its 200-day moving average is $261.11. The firm has a market cap of $124.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.79.

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

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. This is a boost from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total transaction of $228,927.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,946. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, VP David Kwon sold 846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.60, for a total transaction of $228,927.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,946. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total value of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares in the company, valued at $9,899,862.45. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 58,817 shares of company stock worth $15,999,208 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.