Nixon Peabody Trust Co. Boosts Stock Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. grew its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,616 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $2,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in 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 period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president now owns 3,063 shares in the company, valued at $929,007.90. This trade represents a 43.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 68,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,077,721.04. The trade was a 1.04 % 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 over the last quarter. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP stock opened at $315.18 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $300.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $291.92. The firm has a market cap of $128.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.87, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $231.27 and a 1 year high of $316.46. 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 (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 80.86% and a net margin of 19.76%. Analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors 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 1.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho upped their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com cut Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $293.55.

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.