Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Invests $342,000 in WPP PLC $WPP

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in WPP PLC (NYSE:WPP) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,764 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $342,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in WPP by 1.5% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,318,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Ceera Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of WPP by 77.4% during the 1st quarter. Ceera Investments LLC now owns 28,490 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 12,430 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in WPP by 120.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 46,452 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,763,000 after purchasing an additional 25,359 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in WPP by 88.3% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 996 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 467 shares during the period. Finally, Inlet Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in WPP by 31.0% during the first quarter. Inlet Private Wealth LLC now owns 27,900 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,059,000 after buying an additional 6,600 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 4.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WPP. Zacks Research raised shares of WPP from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Kepler Capital Markets downgraded WPP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of WPP in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of WPP in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of WPP in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

WPP Price Performance

Shares of WPP stock opened at $23.87 on Wednesday. WPP PLC has a 1-year low of $22.42 and a 1-year high of $57.37. The company has a market capitalization of $5.15 billion, a PE ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average of $25.31 and a 200-day moving average of $31.42.

WPP Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.5033 per share. This represents a yield of 447.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. WPP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.08%.

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.