Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC Has $1.49 Million Stock Position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 5,103 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $1,494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mengis Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,173 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,978,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,709,000. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 4,514 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,322,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 24.1% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 15,456 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,524,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dover Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $211,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $312.20 on Tuesday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12-month low of $231.27 and a 12-month high of $314.06. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $299.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $290.89. The firm has a market cap of $127.21 billion, a PE ratio of 32.55, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

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 given a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is currently 64.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on ADP. StockNews.com downgraded Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $315.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen lifted their target price 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 lifted their target price 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $293.55.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In other news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total value of $106,366.46. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,027,233.98. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Jonathan S. Lehberger sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.30, for a total value of $704,869.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $929,007.90. This trade represents a 43.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders 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 owned by corporate insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Company 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.