Fifth Third Bancorp Sells 9,724 Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. $ADP

Fifth Third Bancorp decreased its stake in Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 462,616 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 9,724 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Automatic Data Processing were worth $119,382,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in Automatic Data Processing in the second quarter valued at about $13,283,000. Royal Capital Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,226,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter valued at $152,706,000. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,044,000. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. increased its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 192.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 7,165 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 4,711 shares in the last quarter. 80.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Automatic Data Processing from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $336.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on Automatic Data Processing from $287.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $290.00 target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $285.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP David Kwon sold 798 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total value of $223,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 13,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,694,040. The trade was a 5.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Virginia Magliulo sold 2,927 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.70, for a total transaction of $859,659.90. Following the sale, the vice president owned 14,865 shares in the company, valued at $4,365,850.50. This trade represents a 16.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 50,207 shares of company stock valued at $14,522,300. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ ADP opened at $306.36 on Thursday. Automatic Data Processing, Inc. has a 12 month low of $188.16 and a 12 month high of $310.98. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $280.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $242.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $120.94 billion, a PE ratio of 27.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.77.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $5.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.48 billion. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 77.01% and a net margin of 20.33%. The company’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.49 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Automatic Data Processing, Inc. will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 1st. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a $1.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $7.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.28%.

Automatic Data Processing Profile

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP) provides payroll processing and human resources technology and services to businesses of varying sizes. Its offerings include payroll administration, tax filing, benefits administration, workforce management, talent management, and human capital management software. ADP also provides services such as compliance support and professional employer organization solutions, which help businesses manage employment responsibilities. Its products combine software with payroll and HR services to support organizations’ workforce operations.