Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. Reduces Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. trimmed its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 34.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,407 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 3,944 shares during the quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $2,168,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $708,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 280,961 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $77,750,000 after buying an additional 15,340 shares during the last quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co increased its position in Automatic Data Processing by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 99,299 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,068,000 after buying an additional 1,951 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 529,690 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $146,581,000 after acquiring an additional 22,766 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 8.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 667,068 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $194,117,000 after acquiring an additional 51,828 shares in the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $286.13 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $304.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $297.03. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a twelve month low of $231.27 and a twelve month high of $322.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.84, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.74.

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

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.23%.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP David Foskett sold 1,004 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.29, for a total value of $290,447.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,723,589.82. This represents a 14.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 473 shares of Automatic Data Processing 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,244 shares in the company, valued at $2,218,112.80. This trade represents a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,368 shares of company stock worth $1,903,541. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ADP. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $302.30.

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.