Retirement Systems of Alabama Reduces Stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 231,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 404 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.06% of Automatic Data Processing worth $67,720,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sargent Investment Group LLC raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $391,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 18,559 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,433,000 after purchasing an additional 2,040 shares during the period. Newton One Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 34.7% during the 4th quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 4,106 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 1,390 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on ADP shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays increased 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 note on Monday. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. 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 note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $293.55.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares in the company, valued at $20,077,721.04. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,617,241 in the last 90 days. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $304.67 on Wednesday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a one year low of $231.27 and a one year high of $311.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.77, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.79. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $297.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $285.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 64.23%.

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.