Gotham Asset Management LLC Buys 29,514 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 27.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 137,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,514 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $40,248,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ADP. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Automatic Data Processing by 0.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,689,633 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,235,907,000 after buying an additional 389,451 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Automatic Data Processing by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,782,407 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,820,445,000 after acquiring an additional 187,415 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 8,021,194 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,354,220,000 after acquiring an additional 116,074 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 47.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,830,294 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,004,691,000 after acquiring an additional 2,208,927 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,837,993 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,419,951,000 after acquiring an additional 261,312 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP David Foskett sold 266 shares of the company’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 in the company, valued at $2,596,098. The trade was a 2.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian L. Michaud sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.18, for a total transaction of $234,180.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 15,310 shares in the company, valued at $3,585,295.80. This trade represents a 6.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 3,515 shares of company stock valued at $887,074 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of ADP opened at $208.52 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $234.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $259.63. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 52 week low of $203.26 and a 52 week high of $329.93. The stock has a market cap of $83.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.05 and a beta of 0.86.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.34 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 68.44% and a net margin of 19.96%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.35 EPS. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.091-11.011 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Automatic Data Processing Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Automatic Data Processing from $311.00 to $274.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $306.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $303.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $290.00.

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.