Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) Given Sector Perform Rating at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada restated their sector perform rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) in a research report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a $267.00 price objective on the business services provider’s stock.

ADP has been the topic of several other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $271.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $254.00 to $250.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $253.00 to $251.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $259.64.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock traded up $0.34 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $261.64. 126,286 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,671,997. The firm has a market cap of $107.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $244.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $245.58. Automatic Data Processing has a 1-year low of $205.53 and a 1-year high of $269.49.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 91.39%. Automatic Data Processing’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 10 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. now owns 8,863 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,065,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth about $894,000. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 38.0% during the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $294,000 after buying an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 3,396.6% during the 4th quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 38,672 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,072,000 after buying an additional 37,566 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avitas Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,192 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,141,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

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.