Northern Trust Corp Boosts Stake in Wpp Plc $WPP

Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Wpp Plc (NYSE:WPP) by 11.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 283,028 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 29,388 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.13% of WPP worth $10,744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WPP. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of WPP by 88.3% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 996 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of WPP by 3,450.0% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,917 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 1,863 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WPP by 323.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,276 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $200,000 after buying an additional 4,029 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of WPP during the 4th quarter valued at $309,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. raised its holdings in WPP by 108,722.2% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 9,794 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $371,000 after purchasing an additional 9,785 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 4.34% of the company’s stock.

WPP Price Performance

Shares of WPP opened at $26.80 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Wpp Plc has a 1-year low of $24.28 and a 1-year high of $57.37. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $28.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.25.

WPP Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.5033 dividend. This represents a yield of 1,060.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. WPP’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WPP shares. Zacks Research cut WPP from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of WPP in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of WPP in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Kepler Capital Markets downgraded shares of WPP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of WPP from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce”.

About WPP

WPP plc, a creative transformation company, provides communications, experience, commerce, and technology services in North America, the United Kingdom, Western Continental Europe, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Central and Eastern Europe. The company operates through three segments: Global Integrated Agencies, Public Relations, and Specialist Agencies.