Swedbank AB Has $69.22 Million Stock Holdings in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP)

Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 236,457 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,521 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $69,218,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Nvest Financial LLC raised its position in Automatic Data Processing by 28.1% during the fourth quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 4,017 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,176,000 after acquiring an additional 880 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 279,327 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $81,767,000 after purchasing an additional 14,161 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the 4th quarter worth $158,000. BSW Wealth Partners raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 3,721 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 2,266 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $663,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

Shares of ADP stock opened at $300.57 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $297.19 and its 200-day moving average is $283.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.27 and a 52 week high of $311.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.47 billion, a PE ratio of 32.08, a PEG ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.79.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 82.36%. Equities research analysts expect that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $1.54 dividend. This represents a $6.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 362 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.83, for a total transaction of $106,366.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $4,027,233.98. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Maria Black sold 721 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.59, for a total transaction of $210,236.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,077,721.04. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 42,129 shares of company stock worth $12,604,872 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on ADP. Barclays raised their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen upped their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $276.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Automatic Data Processing presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.