Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for ADP Earnings

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) – Zacks Research decreased their Q2 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Automatic Data Processing in a report released on Tuesday, November 18th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the business services provider will earn $2.58 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $2.61. The consensus estimate for Automatic Data Processing’s current full-year earnings is $9.93 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Automatic Data Processing’s Q3 2027 earnings at $3.12 EPS.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.05. Automatic Data Processing had a net margin of 19.79% and a return on equity of 70.63%. The company had revenue of $5.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.33 EPS. Automatic Data Processing’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Automatic Data Processing has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.811-11.011 EPS.

Several other research firms have also commented on ADP. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Automatic Data Processing in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $340.00 to $295.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Dbs Bank upgraded Automatic Data Processing to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $315.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Automatic Data Processing has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $312.67.

Automatic Data Processing Price Performance

ADP stock traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $250.64. 203,108 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,779,601. Automatic Data Processing has a fifty-two week low of $247.18 and a fifty-two week high of $329.93. The stock has a market cap of $101.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.73, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $277.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $297.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 1st. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.54. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Automatic Data Processing news, VP Joseph Desilva sold 4,614 shares of Automatic Data Processing stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.57, for a total transaction of $1,368,373.98. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 17,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,200,651.52. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Don Mcguire sold 13,599 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.57, for a total transaction of $4,033,055.43. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 17,684 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,244,543.88. This trade represents a 43.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 52,516 shares of company stock worth $15,632,410 in the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 30,110.7% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,668,758 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,439,845,000 after purchasing an additional 4,653,304 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Automatic Data Processing during the second quarter valued at $696,841,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in 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 valued at $2,004,691,000 after purchasing an additional 2,208,927 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Automatic Data Processing in the first quarter worth about $661,771,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 128.1% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,585,704 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $484,480,000 after buying an additional 890,440 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Company 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.