ADT Inc.

Quick Take

ADT's federal political footprint is small, but reading only the federal record would understate it. Its corporate PAC, registered with the FEC in 2013, held roughly $98,000 in cash at the end of May 2026 and gives modestly, most reliably to its own industry's trade PAC. [10][12] There are no independent expenditures, no party committee contributions, and no super PAC activity on record, and ADT reports no federal lobbying of its own; its own political policy states flatly that it does not fund independent expenditures at any level. [10][13][14] The more active side of the ledger is at the state level, where ADT retains lobbyists and describes a structured contribution program. [14][15] On social questions, ADT keeps its brand out of contested national legislation while running the kind of internal diversity programming, including a Pride presence, that many large employers now maintain. [16]

From a Baltimore Telegraph Line to a Supreme Court Monopoly Case

ADT traces its origins to 1874 and the American District Telegraph company, later The ADT Corporation, which spent the years 1997 to 2012 under the Tyco International umbrella. [4] Its early business was messenger and telegraph signaling before it became synonymous with alarms. In 1966, the company, then American District Telegraph Co., was a central defendant in United States v. Grinnell Corporation, in which the Supreme Court found that ADT held about 73 percent of the accredited central station protective service market and that the Grinnell group of companies controlled roughly 87 percent, a monopoly built in part through exclusionary agreements and acquisitions. The Court ordered divestiture and other relief. [3]

The modern company took shape through Apollo's roll-up of the alarm business. Funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management first bought Protection 1 in 2015, then acquired The ADT Corporation in an all cash deal that closed in May 2016 at $42.00 a share, a 56 percent premium, and merged the two under the ADT name, a combined transaction valued at about $15 billion. [2][21] Apollo returned the company to the public market with an initial public offering in January 2018, when the stock began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol ADT. [2] Apollo remained the majority owner until March 11, 2024, when it fell below fifty percent, and it exited the company entirely on May 5, 2026, selling its last 102,000,366 shares in a secondary offering. ADT repurchased about 29.1 million of those shares under its buyback plan, three Apollo designated directors resigned, and the bylaws were amended to remove Apollo related provisions, leaving State Farm as ADT's largest shareholder. [2][22] In 2022, State Farm made a $1.2 billion equity investment for roughly a 15 percent stake and took a board seat. [5][7] Because ADT has since retired large blocks of its own stock, State Farm's fixed holding of 133,333,333 shares had grown to about 19.72 percent by July 23, 2026, according to its most recent Schedule 13D filing, which makes the insurer a related party. [5][6] Google holds the third notable stake: in a September 2020 private placement it paid $450 million for 54,744,525 shares of a newly created Class B common stock that carried no vote on the election of directors, about 6.6 percent of ADT at the time, paired with a commercial partnership built around Nest devices. [8] In September 2022, alongside the State Farm deal, Google committed a further $150 million, raising its total success fund commitment to about $300 million. [9] Jim DeVries serves as chairman and chief executive. [1]

Where the Federal Money Goes, and Mostly Does Not

ADT's federal political activity runs almost entirely through one small, employee funded committee: The ADT Security Corporation Political Action Committee (FEC ID C00550988). [10] It reported about $6,391 in receipts and $15,000 in disbursements during the 2025 to 2026 cycle through May 31, 2026, finishing with roughly $98,045 in cash on hand. [10] The clearest and steadiest pattern in its giving is industry, not party: the PAC contributed $5,000 to the Security Industry Association's SecurityPAC almost every year, seven times between 2017 and 2023, for $35,000 in all. [12] Direct contributions to candidates are fewer and smaller; one recurring recipient is Representative Jared Moskowitz of Florida, a Democrat, whose campaigns the PAC has supported across recent cycles. [11] The committee reports no independent expenditures, no party committee contributions, and no outside spending. [10] Beyond the PAC, ADT leaves little federal trace of its own: a search of the Senate lobbying disclosure database returns no lobbying registration for the company or its subsidiaries, and it reports no federal lobbying spending. [13]

The State Capitals Do More Work Than Washington

The federal quiet does not mean ADT is politically inactive. In its own U.S. Political Activity Statement, the company says it has a responsibility to engage on policy that affects its employees, communities and business, that it makes contributions both directly and through its PAC, and that it weighs candidates on factors including their positions on issues important to ADT and whether the company has employees or facilities in the relevant state or district. The same statement sets internal limits, no more than $25,000 for governors or attorneys general and $5,000 for other candidates annually without board committee approval, capped at $250,000 a year, and states plainly that ADT does not fund independent expenditures at any level. [14] The document is dated 2015 and predates the current ADT Inc., and ADT has since published broader governance and impact reporting; it remains, however, the company's specific published statement on how it handles political contributions and lobbying.

That activity is visible in state records. In New Jersey, ADT LLC, doing business as ADT Security Services, retained the firm Public Strategies Impact to lobby during 2024, reporting $36,000, a level of engagement the purely federal filings would miss. [15]

Inclusive Diversity and Belonging, the Pillar ADT Kept

The one place ADT plants a visible values flag is inside its own workforce. It established an Inclusive Diversity and Belonging Council, employee education programs, and Business Employee Resource Groups in 2020, and in 2022 it named Inclusive Diversity and Belonging as one of eight formal environmental, social and governance pillars, listed beside data privacy, environmental management, and responsible governance. [24][25] ADT now runs about ten voluntary resource groups, among them Asian, Black, Hispanic, Women, Veteran, Disabilities, Young Professionals, Mental Wellness, and LGBTQ+ groups; it says the LGBTQ+ group alone counts more than 300 members and is sponsored by a senior executive, and the company has marked Pride Month with an official presence at Pride events in several cities under the banner that everyone deserves to feel safe. [16][26]

What lifts this above boilerplate is that ADT has left the language in place. Its careers site still carried the full Inclusive Diversity and Belonging program and its resource groups as of May 2026, and its 2024 Corporate Impact Report gives dedicated sections to Inclusive Diversity and Belonging and to the resource groups, during a stretch when a number of large employers were paring back or renaming similar efforts. [23][26] Outside its own walls, though, ADT keeps its brand off contested national legislation and partisan causes. [1]

What ADT Sells

ADT provides alarm monitoring, professionally installed home security, video and smart home devices, and small business security across the United States. [1] It has sharpened that focus in recent years, divesting its commercial security business in 2023 and winding down its solar unit by mid 2024 to concentrate on residential and small business customers. [2] Its ADT Plus platform and its Google partnership, which integrates Nest devices into ADT systems, anchor the current lineup. [8]

Recent News

In April 2026, ADT agreed to pay more than $1.3 million to resolve Justice Department allegations that it violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act by imposing a 30-day notice requirement on about 3,400 servicemembers who ended their contracts early after military relocation. The settlement included $1,260,000 in payments to servicemembers and a $79,380 civil penalty, and it required policy and training changes. [19] Also in April 2026, ADT disclosed a new cybersecurity incident involving unauthorized access to certain cloud environments and limited customer and prospective customer data, which it said it did not expect to be material; it had disclosed earlier database intrusions during 2024. [17][18] In 2025, State Farm wound down the jointly marketed ADT home security program the two had piloted, citing low adoption, while preserving existing customers and the related insurance discount. [20] ADT reported full year 2025 revenue of about $5.1 billion and net income of roughly $596 million, and its board authorized a new $1.5 billion share repurchase in March 2026. [1] Two months later Apollo left for good: on May 5, 2026, Apollo managed entities sold their entire remaining stake of 102,000,366 shares in a secondary offering, ADT bought back about 29.1 million of those shares under the repurchase plan, three Apollo designated directors stepped down, and ADT amended its bylaws to remove Apollo related provisions, leaving State Farm as the largest shareholder. [22]

Where to Find Them

ADT sells nationwide to residential and small business customers, both directly and through authorized dealers, from its headquarters in Boca Raton, Florida. Its website is adt.com. [1]

Footnotes

[1] ADT Inc., "ADT Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results; Announces New $1.5 Billion Share Repurchase Authorization," ADT Newsroom, March 2, 2026. https://newsroom.adt.com/financial/adt-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2025-earnings-results-announces-new-1-5-billion-share-repurchase-authorization

[2] ADT Inc., Form 10-K for fiscal year 2024, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, filed February 2025. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1703056/000170305625000022/adt-20241231.htm

[3] United States v. Grinnell Corp., 384 U.S. 563, U.S. Supreme Court, decided June 13, 1966 (ADT found to hold about 73 percent, and the Grinnell group about 87 percent, of the accredited central station protective service market). https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/384/563

[4] "ADT Inc.," Wikipedia, accessed August 20, 2026 (founding and corporate history; underlying facts confirmed against ADT filings). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ADT_Inc.

[5] ADT Inc., Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2025, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1703056/000170305625000166/adt-20250930.htm

[6] State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, Schedule 13D/A (Amendment No. 5) for ADT Inc., U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, filed 2026, reporting 133,333,333 shares (19.72 percent) as of July 23, 2026.

[7] ADT Inc., "ADT Announces Partnership With State Farm," ADT Newsroom, September 15, 2022. https://newsroom.adt.com/corporate-news/adt-announces-partnership-with-state-farm-plans-innovative-offering-that-combines-security-risk-mitigation-and-smart-home-capabilities-to-revolutionize-the-customer-experience

[8] ADT Inc., "ADT Announces Closing of $450 Million Investment by Google," ADT Newsroom, September 17, 2020. https://newsroom.adt.com/financial/adt-announces-closing-450-million-investment-google

[9] "ADT gets a big boost from State Farm and Google deal," CNN Business, September 6, 2022. https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/06/investing/adt-state-farm-google-partnership

[10] Federal Election Commission, "The ADT Security Corporation Political Action Committee (ADT PAC)," committee overview, ID C00550988, accessed August 20, 2026. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00550988/

[11] The ADT Security Corporation Political Action Committee (C00550988), periodic FEC filings, accessed via FEC Itemizer, August 20, 2026. https://projects.propublica.org/itemizer/committee/C00550988

[12] Security Industry Association Political Action Committee (SecurityPAC, C00633107), contributions received from the ADT PAC, accessed via FEC Itemizer, August 20, 2026 (seven contributions of $5,000 between 2017 and 2023). https://projects.propublica.org/itemizer/committee/C00633107/pac-donations/C00550988

[13] Senate Office of Public Records, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings database, U.S. Senate, accessed August 20, 2026 (a search returns no lobbying registration for ADT Inc. or its subsidiaries). https://lda.senate.gov/

[14] The ADT Corporation, "U.S. Political Activity Statement," adopted March 11, 2014, revised December 14, 2015, accessed August 20, 2026. https://www.adt.com/content/dam/adt/downloads/about-adt/ADT-Political-Activity-Statement-Rev-12-14-15.pdf

[15] New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission, 2024 annual lobbying report (L-2 alphabetical listing; ADT LLC dba ADT Security Services, governmental affairs agent Public Strategies Impact LLC, $36,000), accessed August 20, 2026. https://www.elec.nj.gov/pdffiles/Lobby2024/l2l.pdf

[16] James Sweet, "Everyone deserves to feel safe: ADT celebrates June Pride Month," ADT Newsroom, May 31, 2023. https://newsroom.adt.com/blog/everyone-deserves-to-feel-safe-adt-celebrates-june-pride-month

[17] ADT Inc., Current Report on Form 8-K (cybersecurity incident), U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, 2024. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1703056/000095015724001064/form8k.htm

[18] ADT Inc., Current Report on Form 8-K (cybersecurity incident, event dated April 20, 2026), U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1703056/000170305626000038/adt-20260420.htm

[19] U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, "ADT LLC d/b/a ADT Security Services," settlement resolving Servicemembers Civil Relief Act allegations, April 14, 2026. https://www.justice.gov/crt/case/adt-llc-dba-adt-security-services

[20] "State Farm pulls back on ADT program," Coverager, August 29, 2025. https://coverager.com/state-farm-pulls-back-on-adt-program/

[21] ADT Inc., "The ADT Corporation Announces the Closing of the Previously Announced Transaction with Protection 1, an Affiliate of Certain Funds Managed By Affiliates of Apollo Global Management, LLC," ADT investor relations, May 2, 2016. https://investor.adt.com/News--Events/news/news-details/2016/The-ADT-Corporation-Announces-the-Closing-of-the-Previously-Announced-Transaction-with-Protection-1-an-Affiliate-of-Certain-Funds-Managed-By-Affiliates-of-Apollo-Global-Management-LLC-05-02-2016/default.aspx

[22] "Apollo Sells Out of ADT, Ending Nearly Decade-Long Investment," Security Info Watch, May 2026, corroborated by ADT Inc., Current Report on Form 8-K (secondary offering of 102,000,366 shares, director resignations, and bylaw amendments), U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, May 2026. https://www.securityinfowatch.com/alarms-monitoring/news/55375510/apollo-sells-out-of-adt-ending-nearly-decade-long-investment

[23] ADT Inc., "2024 Corporate Impact Report," ADT (dedicated sections on Inclusive Diversity and Belonging and Business Employee Resource Groups), accessed August 20, 2026. https://s201.q4cdn.com/833622905/files/doc_downloads/2024/ADT_2024_Impact_Report-Final.pdf

[24] ADT Inc., "2020 SASB Index Report," ADT (establishment of the Inclusive Diversity and Belonging Council, learning programs, and Business Employee Resource Groups in 2020), accessed August 20, 2026. https://s201.q4cdn.com/833622905/files/doc_downloads/ADT-2020-SASB-Index-Report.pdf

[25] ADT Inc., "ADT Presents Long-Term Growth Strategy and Mission: Safe, Smart, Sustainable," ADT Newsroom, March 2, 2022 (lists eight ESG pillars, including inclusive diversity and belonging). https://newsroom.adt.com/corporate-news/adt-presents-long-term-growth-strategy-and-mission-safe-smart

[26] "Our Commitment to Inclusion and Diversity," Careers at ADT, accessed August 20, 2026 (page last updated May 11, 2026; Business Employee Resource Group roster). https://jobs.adt.com/diversity/