Physicians Financial Services Inc. Sells 925 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Physicians Financial Services Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,437 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 925 shares during the period. Automatic Data Processing accounts for 1.9% of Physicians Financial Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Physicians Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $6,209,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 78.5% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth $33,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on ADP shares. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $289.91.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total value of $7,164,724.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,959,908.96. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Michael A. Bonarti sold 26,442 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.96, for a total transaction of $7,164,724.32. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 88,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,959,908.96. This represents a 0.00 % 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 Don Mcguire sold 3,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.38, for a total transaction of $872,254.02. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 41,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,440,548.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 58,817 shares of company stock valued at $15,999,208 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ADP traded up $0.81 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $305.66. 79,051 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,628,824. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $225.38 and a 12 month high of $306.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $282.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $261.11. The firm has a market cap of $124.54 billion, a PE ratio of 32.53, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.79.

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

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

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

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.