Clark & Stuart Inc Purchases 11,617 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Clark & Stuart Inc increased its position in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 404.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 14,491 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,617 shares during the period. Automatic Data Processing accounts for 2.6% of Clark & Stuart Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Clark & Stuart Inc’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $3,748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Automatic Data Processing News

Here are the key news stories impacting Automatic Data Processing this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Guggenheim initiated coverage of ADP with a Buy / Strong‑Buy rating and a $270 price target (roughly ~29% upside from recent levels); the firm argued AI fears are premature and flagged ADP’s durable cash flows and dividend profile as positives. Guggenheim initiates coverage of Automatic Data Processing (ADP) with buy recommendation Guggenheim Initiates ADP as Buy, Says Fears around AI Are Premature Zacks summary
• Neutral Sentiment: ADP was highlighted in dividend-stock writeups (InsiderMonkey / other outlets) emphasizing its ~3%+ yield and steady income characteristics — supports longer-term investor interest but is not an immediate catalyst. 5 Dividend Stocks to Buy for Steady Income
• Neutral Sentiment: Published short‑interest data in feeds shows a large March “increase,” but the print is internally inconsistent (zeros/NaN). This appears to be a data error and shouldn’t be treated as a genuine short‑squeeze signal without corrected filings.
• Negative Sentiment: MarketWatch noted ADP underperformed peers recently despite some daily gains, a reminder that positive analyst notes don’t always produce immediate outperformance — investors may be taking profits or reacting to broader market/sector pressure. Automatic Data Processing Inc. stock underperforms

Automatic Data Processing Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of ADP opened at $208.72 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business has a fifty day moving average of $229.28 and a 200 day moving average of $256.66. The company has a market cap of $84.04 billion, a PE ratio of 20.07 and a beta of 0.86. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $203.26 and a 52-week high of $329.93.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.34 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.96% and a return on equity of 68.44%. The business’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.35 earnings per share. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.091-11.011 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.38%.

Automatic Data Processing declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 5.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $306.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Monday, December 29th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $270.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $288.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.18, for a total transaction of $234,180.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 15,310 shares in the company, valued at $3,585,295.80. The trade was a 6.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Christopher D’ambrosio sold 543 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.29, for a total value of $142,423.47. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 9,998 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,622,375.42. The trade was a 5.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 4,058 shares of company stock worth $1,000,263 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Automatic Data Processing

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.