Automatic Data Processing management check
ADP · Industrials · Human Resource & Employment Services · CEO Maria Black
Filings as of
4 good · 2 to watch · 1 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Flag
Have owners done well?
Trailed its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2022 grew to $126, against $167 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Watch
Does pay follow performance?
Pay only loosely tracked returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.08 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.6% of net income$25.5m of reported pay in fiscal 2026, against $4.4bn of net income.
- Good
Do they own the stock?
Insiders are buyingThe CEO holds 141,649.634 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 1.6 years of pay. 1 insider bought $746k on the open market in the last six months, with their own money, near the lows. Sales: $12.4m.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -0.8% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 1.3% of revenue in the latest year.
- Watch
Is leadership stable?
2 CEOs in the pay tableCEOs in the pay table: Mr. Rodriguez, Ms. Black. 4 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Industrials.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 19 | 55 | |
| Pay for performance | 54 | 86 | |
| CEO cost | 70 | 48 | |
| Skin in the game | 65 | 55 | |
| Dilution | 61 | 62 | |
| Stable leadership | 60 | 75 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Human Resource & Employment Services, by management score. Automatic Data Processing is 56th of 81 in its sector.
- 271PAYXPaychex63
- 290ALLEAllegion62
- 293NDSNNordson Corporation62
- 299ADPAutomatic Data Processing61
- 300WMWaste Management61
- 305ITWIllinois Tool Works61
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed September 24, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Ms. Black | $25.5m | $12.1m | $6.1m | $126 | $167 | $4.4bn |
| 2025 | Ms. Black | $19.1m | $31.9m | $6.0m | $169 | $146 | $4.1bn |
| 2024 | Ms. Black | $15.9m | $17.8m | $7.3m | $128 | $126 | $3.8bn |
| 2023 | Ms. Black | $19.4m | $26.9m | $5.4m | $115 | $109 | $3.4bn |
| 2022 | Mr. Rodriguez | $20.8m | $35.7m | $6.0m | $108 | $94 | $2.9bn |
The board says pay is tied most to adjusted net income growth. Its other key measures: Revenue Growth, New Business Bookings Growth, Adjusted EBIT Growth, Adjusted Net Income Growth, Revenue ex-ZMPT Growth.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Maria Black (President & CEO) held 141,649.634 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Sep 2, 2026, roughly $39.8m at that filing's price.
1 insider bought $746k on the open market in the last six months, with their own money, near the lows. Sales: $12.4m.
- BoughtRobert Holmes SwanDirector$746kMay 7, 2026
- SoldMaria BlackPresident & CEO · 10b5-1 plan$8.4mSep 2, 2026
- SoldJoseph DeSilvaExecutive VP · 10b5-1 plan$2.0mSep 3, 2026
- SoldDavid KwonCorp VP · 10b5-1 plan$865kAug 20, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Apr 30, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 8, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- May 9, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jan 10, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 16, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 26, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 11, 2022Leadership change8-K/A 5.02
- Feb 14, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 1, 2021Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Nov 17, 2025, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $16.7bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 99% of net income, and $1.1bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $15.0bn | $16.5bn | $18.0bn | $19.2bn | $20.6bn |
| Net income | $2.6bn | $2.9bn | $3.4bn | $3.8bn | $4.1bn |
| Stock-based pay | $175.3m | $201.7m | $220.4m | $243.5m | $266.1m |
| Buybacks | $1.4bn | $2.0bn | $1.1bn | $1.2bn | $1.3bn |
| Dividends | $1.6bn | $1.7bn | $1.9bn | $2.2bn | $2.4bn |
| Diluted shares | 428m | 421m | 416m | 412m | 409m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.