800 Shares in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Purchased by Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC

Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 800 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,065,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $964,989,000 after acquiring an additional 435,093 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,548,165 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $846,912,000 after buying an additional 139,561 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,556,377 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $610,182,000 after buying an additional 9,464 shares during the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. grew its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 4,431.5% in the 3rd quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 2,315,295 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $640,712,000 after buying an additional 2,264,202 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 13.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,296,344 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $548,099,000 after purchasing an additional 269,986 shares in the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, Director Carlos A. Rodriguez sold 9,203 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.45, for a total transaction of $2,479,748.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,899,862.45. This represents a 20.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,781,200. This trade represents a 54.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 70,504 shares of company stock valued at $20,298,056. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $307.97 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $227.12 and a 12 month high of $309.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $290.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $267.03. The stock has a market cap of $125.48 billion, a PE ratio of 32.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The business had revenue of $4.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.08 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. This is a boost from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is presently 65.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ADP shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com lowered Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.91.

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.