Bank of New York Mellon Corp Sells 477,600 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Bank of New York Mellon Corp cut its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,631,149 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 477,600 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $1,946,242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ADP. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 0.9% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,300,182 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,736,976,000 after purchasing an additional 350,298 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,782,407 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,820,445,000 after buying an additional 187,415 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 3.1% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,388,935 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,511,698,000 after buying an additional 345,798 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Automatic Data Processing by 30,110.7% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,668,758 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,439,845,000 after acquiring an additional 4,653,304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 13.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,576,681 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,411,449,000 after acquiring an additional 544,968 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on ADP. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $303.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $306.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $288.00 to $272.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $340.00 to $295.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $306.38.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $254.51 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $102.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.12 and a beta of 0.86. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $247.18 and a 1-year high of $329.93. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $258.54 and a 200-day moving average of $278.75.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $5.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.14 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 70.63% and a net margin of 19.79%.Automatic Data Processing’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 67.13%.

Automatic Data Processing declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 14th that permits the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 5.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 543 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.29, for a total transaction of $142,423.47. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 9,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,622,375.42. The trade was a 5.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP David Kwon sold 806 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.80, for a total transaction of $213,428.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 11,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,962,317.60. This represents a 6.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,249 shares of company stock worth $589,852. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Automatic Data Processing Profile

Automatic Data Processing, Inc (ADP) is a global provider of cloud-based human capital management (HCM) and payroll solutions. Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Roseland, New Jersey, ADP began as a payroll processing company and has evolved into a diversified provider of workforce management, HR, benefits administration, tax and compliance services, and analytics for employers of all sizes.

ADP’s product portfolio includes payroll processing and tax filing, time and attendance systems, benefits administration, talent management, and HR outsourcing.