Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 4,708 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 694,891 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 4,708 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $203,951,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 30,110.7% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,668,758 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,439,845,000 after purchasing an additional 4,653,304 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Automatic Data Processing during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $696,841,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 32.1% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,273,700 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $960,831,000 after buying an additional 796,379 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in Automatic Data Processing by 24.9% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 3,109,120 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $948,549,000 after acquiring an additional 619,829 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 26.6% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,812,637 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $867,445,000 after acquiring an additional 591,800 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ADP. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $306.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $280.00 to $270.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $272.00 to $262.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $311.00 to $274.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $290.00.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

ADP opened at $216.27 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $241.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $264.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $87.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.80 and a beta of 0.86. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $203.26 and a 1-year high of $329.93.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its earnings results 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. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.96% and a return on equity of 68.44%. The company had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.35 EPS. Automatic Data Processing’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.091-11.011 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s payout ratio is 65.38%.

Automatic Data Processing announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 14th that allows the company to buyback $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 5.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Automatic Data Processing

In related news, VP David Kwon sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $234,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 11,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,118,180. This trade represents a 6.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP David Foskett sold 266 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.00, for a total value of $63,042.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 10,954 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,596,098. The trade was a 2.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 3,515 shares of company stock worth $887,074 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.