With bookings, pays per control and bookings all down, the payroll performance produced a “significantly worse quarter than any quarter in the financial crisis,” CEO Carlos Rodriguez said during the weeks’ webcast for earnings for the third quarter ended March 31.

“We saw bookings declined significantly and rapidly in mid-March when we typically would have expected to close many deals,” Rodriguez said.  Bookings for the third quarter were off 9 percent over last year’s corresponding period. “We make tactical adjustments as we navigate through this crisis,” Rodriguez said. But he continued,  “We believe our long-term strategy is unaffected.”

Those adjustments include a change in investments include selling $1.2 billion in previously purchased long and extended maturity securities in April and halting all reinvestment in long and extended portfolios. The company also adjusted its fourth-quarter outlook for payroll revenue to a 1-percent-to-2-percent increase compared to the previously forecast of 3 percent

For the third quarter, ADP reported net income of $820.9 million, up 8.9 percent from $753.7 million a. year earlier. Revenue for the most recently ended period was $4,05 billion an increase of 6.7 percent, from $3.83 billion in last year’s corresponding period.

Employer services revenue was $2.81 billion, a rise of  3 percent from $2.72 billion. Revenue for the Professional Employer Services was $1.24 billion, rising 11 percent from $1.12 billion.