JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) Price Target to $250.00

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) had its price objective cut by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $254.00 to $250.00 in a report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday. Wolfe Research raised shares of Automatic Data Processing from an underperform rating to a peer perform rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a sector perform rating and set a $267.00 price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. StockNews.com cut Automatic Data Processing from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Bank of America raised Automatic Data Processing from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and lifted their target price for the company from $217.00 to $243.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $255.42.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Automatic Data Processing stock opened at $241.89 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.37 billion, a PE ratio of 27.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.78. Automatic Data Processing has a 12-month low of $205.53 and a 12-month high of $256.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $245.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $239.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.79 by $0.09. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 93.09%. The business had revenue of $5.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.52 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.15 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 62.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 694 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.43, for a total transaction of $173,104.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,159,958.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 694 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.43, for a total value of $173,104.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,159,958.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Joseph Desilva sold 1,904 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total transaction of $485,520.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 17,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,380,645. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,829 shares of company stock worth $965,274. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Automatic Data Processing

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 230.3% during the first quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC now owns 109 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Evolution Advisers Inc. acquired a new stake in Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

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.