Norges Bank Invests $308.32 Million in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,323,436 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $308,321,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 0.32% of Automatic Data Processing at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,670,083 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,085,849,000 after acquiring an additional 198,008 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 5.1% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,902,520 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,420,028,000 after purchasing an additional 288,234 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,242,859 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,261,327,000 after purchasing an additional 77,187 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 18.3% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,576,575 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $855,287,000 after purchasing an additional 553,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 40.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,128,701 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $752,703,000 after purchasing an additional 905,043 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ ADP opened at $252.14 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $245.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $240.81. The company has a market capitalization of $103.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $205.53 and a 1 year high of $256.84.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.79 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 93.09%. The business’s revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.52 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 transaction, the vice president now owns 20,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,159,958.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Joseph Desilva sold 1,904 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total value of $485,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 17,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,380,645. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 694 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,159,958.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,966 shares of company stock valued at $749,524. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on ADP shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $267.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $265.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $255.42.

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.