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Bull: Higher-for-longer rates augment margins on PEO funds, while AI-driven insights capture market share.
Severe Macroeconomic Recession: Deep recession triggers heavy workforce reductions, directly compressing seat-based billing metrics and organic revenue growth.
ADP is a quintessential mature compounder dominating the global HCM and payroll processing markets. Its wide moat, built on exceptionally high switching costs and network scale, generates highly predictable free cash flow.
ADP is a quintessential mature compounder dominating the global HCM and payroll processing markets. Its wide moat, built on exceptionally high switching costs and network scale, generates highly predictable free cash flow.
Exceptionally high enterprise switching costs for core payroll systems.
Massive network scale across global HCM markets.
Higher-for-longer interest rates act as a 100% margin tailwind on PEO funds. Accelerated enterprise adoption of Next Gen HCM drives top-line growth.
Maintain Hold. Fair value of $240.64 is supported by pristine accounting and structural advantages, capturing a 15-year wide moat duration.
Automatic Data Processing, Inc. provides cloud-based human capital management (HCM) 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. This segment's offerings include RUN Powered by ADP, a software platform for small business payroll, HR, and compliance; ADP Workforce Now, a HCM solution used across mid-sized and large businesses to manage employees; and ADP Lyric HCM, a solution for HR management, payroll, workforce management, talent, and data analytics. The PEO Services segment provides HR and employment administration outsourcing solutions under ADP TotalSource name to businesses through a co-employment model. The segment also provides guidance, user-friendly technology, comprehensive employee benefits, and a risk management, safety, and workers' compensation program. The company was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Roseland, New Jersey.
Under a dual shock of employment contraction and falling interest rates, EPS growth could decelerate into the low single digits. Combined with multiple contraction to peer medians, intrinsic valuation faces extreme downside risk toward $173.
Macro recession compresses billing metrics while falling rates strip float yield, dragging EPS growth down and contracting terminal multiples.
Deep recession triggers heavy workforce reductions, directly compressing seat-based billing metrics and organic revenue growth.
Rapid return to ZIRP structurally strips yield out of PEO client funds, removing a 100% margin tailwind.
The five developments that would weaken our investment case.
Decelerating earnings per share growth impairs the compounding thesis, demonstrating that share repurchases and modest organic gains can no longer compensate for macroeconomic headwinds.
Current:Diluted EPS was 9.98 for the period ended 2025-06-30
Alert ifDecelerates below 8.0% year-over-year for two consecutive quarters
Exceptionally high enterprise switching costs for core payroll systems.
Massive network scale across global HCM markets.
Recurring revenue model generating predictable cash flows.
Economic profit is supported when reported returns exceed the company cost-of-capital hurdle.
Each lens answers a different valuation question. Only included lenses set Fair value; floors and diagnostics provide context.
Project SBC-adjusted , discount each year's earnings at , then add a Gordon-growth .
Unavailable
The highlighted base cell is anchored to composite fair-value midpoint ($240.64). It is the reference value for this grid, not a separate standalone fair-value claim.
FCFF DCF remains positive at the base case: base FCFF $4.5B after capex $555.1M, with terminal value at 60.3% of enterprise value. No FCF cliff is projected unless capex/revenue or gross margin materially resets.
Higher-for-longer rates augment margins on PEO funds, while AI-driven insights capture market share. Sustainable top-line growth reaches 8-9%.
If macro holds and rates stay high, expect steady double-digit EPS expansion via buybacks and float yield. If employment contracts, EPS growth will decelerate to mid-single digits.
If macro holds and rates stay high, expect steady double-digit EPS expansion via buybacks and float yield. If employment contracts, EPS growth will decelerate to mid-single digits.
If macro holds and rates stay high, expect steady double-digit EPS expansion via buybacks and float yield. If employment contracts, EPS growth will decelerate to mid-single digits.
If macro holds and rates stay high, expect steady double-digit EPS expansion via buybacks and float yield. If employment contracts, EPS growth will decelerate to mid-single digits.
Warning level: Decelerates below 8.0% year-over-year for two consecutive quarters. Decelerating earnings per share growth impairs the compounding thesis, demonstrating that share repurchases and modest organic gains can no longer compensate for macroeconomic headwinds.
Capital allocation should be evaluated against reinvestment needs, balance-sheet strength, and shareholder returns.
| Revenue | 20,560,900,000 |
|---|---|
| Cost of revenue | 11,097,300,000 |
| Gross profit | 9,463,600,000 |
| Operating expenses | 4,051,700,000 |
| Operating income | 5,411,900,000 |
| Non-operating items and tax | -1,332,200,000 |
| Net income | 4,079,700,000 |
| Total assets | 53,369,300,000 |
|---|---|
| Cash | 3,347,800,000 |
| Current assets | 43,252,200,000 |
| Total liabilities | 47,181,300,000 |
| Current liabilities | 41,278,300,000 |
| Shareholders’ equity | 6,188,000,000 |
Point-in-time financial data used in the 2026-05-20 analysis.
| Period | Revenue | EBITDA | Net income | Operating cash flow | Free cash flow | Capex | Depreciation and amortization | Stock-based compensation | Share repurchases | Dividends paid | Net debt issuance | Investing cash flow | Financing cash flow | Beginning cash | Ending cash | Cash and investments | Total debt | Operating margin | ROIC | WACC | ROIC − WACC spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-06-30 | 16.5B | 4.4B | 2.9B | 3.1B | 2.5B | 553.4M | 515.1M | 201.7M | 2B | 1.7B | -900K | — | — | — | — | 1.4B | 3.4B | 23.1% | — | 7.3% | — |
| 2023-06-30 | 18B | 5.2B | 3.4B | 4.2B | 3.6B | 571.6M | 549.3M | 220.4M | 1.1B | 1.9B | -1M | — | — | — | — | 2.1B | 3.3B | 25.0% | — | 8.2% | — |
| 2024-06-30 | 19.2B | 5.8B | 3.8B | 4.2B | 3.6B | 563.4M | 561.9M | 243.5M | 1.2B | 2.2B | -900K | — | — | — | — | 2.9B | 3.3B | 25.8% | — | 8.7% | — |
| 2025-06-30 | 20.6B | 6.3B | 4.1B | 4.9B | 4.4B | 547M | 582.4M | 266.1M | 1.3B | 2.4B | 5.7B | — | — | — | — | 3.3B | 9.1B | 26.3% | — | — | — |
ADP trades at 18.1x forward earnings against a peer median of 17.1x; EV/EBITDA of 14.1x against a peer median of 22.5x; 6 peers.
Capital-light phase. Maintenance capex is structurally bounded. Massive ongoing share buybacks dominate capital returns.
Higher-for-longer interest rates act as a 100% margin tailwind on PEO funds. Accelerated enterprise adoption of Next Gen HCM drives top-line growth.
Macroeconomic recession triggers heavy workforce reductions. Falling interest rates strip yield from client funds.
Capital-light phase. Maintenance capex is structurally bounded. Massive ongoing share buybacks dominate capital returns.
Core holding sizing appropriate due to wide moat and predictable cash flows. Limit overweighting given the thin margin of safety on WACC.
Reassess if net revenue retention materially declines or if structural ZIRP returns, permanently impairing float yields.
Hold. The tightly clustered synthesis yields a fair value of $240.64, representing ~9% upside.
Severely undervalued by standard accounting metrics but accurately priced by intrinsic cash flow models. Extremely high predictability justifies current multiples.
Hold. The tightly clustered synthesis yields a fair value of $240.64, representing ~9% upside.
Reassess the thesis against the named valuation, risk, and quarterly checkpoint evidence in this report.
Capture your own thesis, position size, and follow-up questions. Stays on this device, only you can see it.
Accelerated adoption of modern HCM platforms causes a material decline in net revenue retention.
Lower net retention signals enterprise client defections and reduced upsell penetration, eroding high-margin recurring software revenues and necessitating higher customer acquisition expenditures.
Current:Client retention actively tracked as of 2026-05-20
Alert ifDeclines by more than 200 basis points year-over-year
Competitive losses to modern cloud platforms permanently reduce large-scale payroll processing volume, undermining scale advantages and capping enterprise market share.
Current:Enterprise logo retention active as of 2026-05-20
Alert ifEnterprise client logo churn increases by more than 15.0% year-over-year
Widespread employment contraction directly shrinks seat-based billing counts, causing immediate operational deleveraging across core human capital management processing divisions.
Current:Seat-based billing metrics active as of 2026-05-20
Alert ifContracts by more than 3.0% year-over-year across two consecutive quarters
Falling benchmark interest rates eliminate pure-margin float income earned on held funds, removing a critical profit tailwind and reducing consolidated operating margins.
Current:Client funds yielding 100% margin revenue as of 2026-05-20
Alert ifDeclines by more than 50 basis points sequentially over two consecutive quarters
| Monitor |
| Monitor the threat against the report checkpoints. |
This edition does not contain enough finite inputs to reproduce the lens calculation.
Project EPS through the explicit advantage period, fade growth as competition catches up, and discount the full stream at cost of equity.
This edition does not contain enough finite inputs to reproduce the lens calculation.
Apply a terminal P/E to the dated forward EPS path, then discount that future share value back to the analysis date.
This edition does not contain enough finite inputs to reproduce the lens calculation.
Convert the revenue and margin path into after-tax free cash flow, discount the annual per-share amounts and terminal value at WACC, then adjust for signed net debt per current share.
This edition does not contain enough finite inputs to reproduce the lens calculation.
Add depreciation to net income, subtract maintenance capex, divide by diluted shares, and apply a normalized valuation multiple.
This edition does not contain enough finite inputs to reproduce the lens calculation.
Multiply the peer median PEG by this stock's forecast growth to derive an implied forward P/E, then apply it to forward EPS.
This edition does not contain enough finite inputs to reproduce the lens calculation.
Consistent mid-single-digit revenue growth and aggressive share repurchases support steady double-digit EPS expansion. Fair value centers at $240.64.
Warning level: Declines by more than 200 basis points year-over-year. Lower net retention signals enterprise client defections and reduced upsell penetration, eroding high-margin recurring software revenues and necessitating higher customer acquisition expenditures.
Warning level: Enterprise client logo churn increases by more than 15.0% year-over-year. Competitive losses to modern cloud platforms permanently reduce large-scale payroll processing volume, undermining scale advantages and capping enterprise market share.
Warning level: Contracts by more than 3.0% year-over-year across two consecutive quarters. Widespread employment contraction directly shrinks seat-based billing counts, causing immediate operational deleveraging across core human capital management processing divisions.
Warning level: Declines by more than 50 basis points sequentially over two consecutive quarters. Falling benchmark interest rates eliminate pure-margin float income earned on held funds, removing a critical profit tailwind and reducing consolidated operating margins.
| Margin |
|---|
| ADP | Automatic Data Processing Inc. | $88.1B | 18.1x | 4.1x | 14.1x | — | — |
| UBER | Uber Technologies Inc. | 17.1x | 2.8x | 22.5x | 35.3% | 14.6% | |
| CRM | Salesforce Inc. | 12.0x | 3.5x | 13.8x | 12.4% | 19.2% | |
| SHOP | Shopify Inc. | 47.5x | 11.6x | 64.1x | 11.3% | 15.7% | |
| INTU | Intuit Inc. | 15.1x | 5.5x | 18.7x | 23.5% | 18.4% | |
| NOW | ServiceNow Inc. | 20.3x | 7.5x | 35.4x | 16.1% | 13.3% |
