<div id="readability-page-1"><ul><li>The Late-Stage Bull Market Is a Buying Opportunity for Tech</li></ul><p>Automatic Data Processing <span>NASDAQ: ADP<span></span></span> President and CEO Maria Black said the human capital management provider is seeing a “generally stable” but still muted labor environment, while positioning the company for what she described as a “defining moment” for the HCM industry.</p><p>Speaking with Tien-Tsin Huang, who covers payments processors and IT services at JPMorgan, Black said ADP’s data gives it a “front row seat” into labor, wage and employment trends, though she emphasized that the company is not in the business of predictive modeling.  </p><ul><li>3 Large Cap Stocks Announce Big Buyback Boosts Amid +20% Falls</li></ul><p>Black pointed to ADP’s guidance for roughly 1% “pays per control” growth, which she described as a same-store-style measure of the number of pays per company at ADP. She said the company was pleased to see an uptick in the second and third quarters, allowing it to raise that guide back to roughly 1%.  </p><p>“I think our lens is that it’s a relatively muted environment. It’s relatively stable,” Black said.  </p><h2>ADP Sees Stable Labor Trends, Some Sector Strength</h2>  <ul><li>3 Stocks That Benefit if Companies Cut Costs in 2026</li></ul><p>Black discussed ADP’s National Employment Report and its newer weekly “National Employment Report Pulse,” or NERP. She said the weekly number was 42,250, while the April report was 109,000. She characterized the broader labor backdrop as a “low hire, low fire” environment.  </p><p>On the technology sector, Black said IT is still adding jobs, citing 11,000 in February, 16,000 in March and 4,000 in April. She also said some areas, including trades and hospitality, are showing growth, while other sectors remain under more pressure.  </p><h2>Black Says AI Adds Complexity, Not Less Demand for HCM</h2>  <p>Black said the rise of artificial intelligence is changing jobs and tasks, but she argued it does not reduce the need for payroll, compliance and workforce management systems.  </p><p>“As AI gets infused into work, we don’t see the need to manage people and payroll and the very functions of HCM to go away,” Black said. “We actually see them becoming even more important.”  </p><p>She highlighted the complexity of payroll, saying it must be “100% accurate 100% of the time,” and noted that regulatory requirements continue to expand. Black cited areas such as data privacy, data lodgment, federal and state regulatory conflicts, and the EU Pay Transparency Directive.  </p><p>Black also emphasized ADP’s role in what she called the “final mile” of payroll: connections with regulators, carriers, brokers and banking institutions. She said ADP communicates with “tens of thousands of entities” to complete payroll accurately.  </p><h2>Pricing, Retention and AI Monetization</h2>  <p>Huang noted that ADP’s recent key performance indicators, including net-positive pricing, retention and client satisfaction scores, appeared to counter some investor concerns about AI disruption. Black said ADP’s model is based on value-based pricing and investments that create productivity and efficiency for clients.  </p><p>Black said ADP is guiding to 130 basis points of price this year, up from 100 basis points. She said clients continue to ask ADP to bring more value and are willing to pay for it when the value is clear.  </p><p>Asked whether ADP will monetize AI tools separately or through its normal pricing cadence, Black said the answer is “both.” She said AI can support ADP’s recurring revenue model through more bookings, longer client relationships and referrals. She also said there could be opportunities for new revenue lines, pointing to benchmarking, analytics and employment verification as examples of how ADP has already monetized data-driven tools.  </p><h2>Bookings, Competition and Lyric</h2>  <p>Black said ADP was pleased with year-to-date bookings momentum and described third-quarter performance as broad-based. She cited international operations, Compliance Solutions, Retirement Services and Insurance Services as areas of strength. She said the company is entering the fourth quarter with “good momentum” and “solid pipelines.”  </p><p>Black also discussed ADP’s investments in sales headcount, tools and technology, including “The Zone,” a proprietary platform designed to use AI in the sales process by serving up the right lead, seller and offer at the right time.  </p><p>On competition, Black said ADP operates in a “highly competitive” space and monitors peers closely. However, she said she has not seen anything unusual in the competitive environment. She added that ADP is distinctive because it spans the full spectrum of customers, from very small businesses to global employers with as many as 1 million employees.  </p><p>Black described ADP’s Lyric platform as a “TAM expander” into enterprise HR. She said Lyric is architected at the employee level and supports “dynamic teams,” multiple reporting managers and task-based work, which she said is becoming more important as AI changes work patterns. She said Lyric, combined with Global Payroll across 140 countries, Global Time and WorkForce Software, has changed ADP’s conversations with enterprise and multinational clients.  </p><h2>Product Roadmap, PEO and Capital Allocation</h2>  <p>Black said ADP Assist is the company’s overarching framework for AI offerings inside its platforms. She said ADP Assist is deployed across HCM domains including payroll, time, benefits, HR and tax. One cited example was ADP Assist for payroll, which she said is shaving 30 minutes off the payroll cycle for users.  </p><p>Black also pointed to digital transformation in the down market, including implementation and onboarding automation. She said ADP now has line of sight to “almost entirely automate” some onboarding work.  </p><p>On the company’s professional employer organization, or PEO, Black said secular demand remains strong, supported by complexity in labor management, regulation and rising healthcare costs. She said roughly 50% of new PEO clients come from ADP’s existing client base, though not every ADP client is a fit for the PEO model.  </p><p>Black also addressed the RUN/Clover partnership with Fiserv, saying her enthusiasm “only continues to grow.” She said RUN has been placed into the Clover platform and CashFlow Central into the ADP platform, with sales motions aligned between the teams.  </p><p>Regarding capital allocation, Black said ADP stepped up share repurchases through the end of 2026 and referenced the company’s 51st year of dividends, calling ADP a Dividend King. She said ADP remains open to acquisitions, citing the recent PEI acquisition in Mexico and the $1.2 billion acquisition of WorkForce Software nearly two years ago.  </p><p>Black closed by emphasizing client trust as a central advantage for ADP as the company navigates technological, economic and workforce changes.</p><h2>About Automatic Data Processing <span>NASDAQ: ADP<span></span></span></h2><p>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.  </p><p>ADP's product portfolio includes payroll processing and tax filing, time and attendance systems, benefits administration, talent management, and HR outsourcing.</p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Automatic Data Processing Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Automatic Data Processing, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Automatic Data Processing wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Automatic Data Processing currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

<p>Automatic Data Processing (ADP) CEO Maria Black highlighted a stable yet muted labor market, calling it a 'defining moment' for the human capital management (HCM) industry. She noted that while AI is changing job functions, it increases the need for payroll and compliance systems. ADP anticipates 1% growth in 'pays per control' and sees strength in IT and certain sectors. Black emphasized ADP's value-based pricing and the potential for new revenue through AI tools, while maintaining a strong competitive position across various customer segments.</p>

Automatic Data Processing CEO Says AI Marks ‘Defining Moment’ as Labor Market Stays Muted