Aberdeen Group plc Acquires 7,625 Shares of Omnicom Group Inc. $OMC

Aberdeen Group plc increased its holdings in shares of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 152,710 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,625 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned 0.08% of Omnicom Group worth $12,331,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Omnicom Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $515,145,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Omnicom Group by 73.6% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,652,469 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $542,376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,820,553 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Omnicom Group by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,863,327 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,384,980,000 after purchasing an additional 2,298,652 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Omnicom Group by 30.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,107,021 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $660,969,000 after purchasing an additional 1,893,316 shares during the period. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new position in shares of Omnicom Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $67,048,000. 91.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Omnicom Group from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Omnicom Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Argus upgraded shares of Omnicom Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Omnicom Group from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $77.00 price objective (down from $87.00) on shares of Omnicom Group in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.86.

Omnicom Group Stock Performance

NYSE:OMC opened at $75.68 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.90. Omnicom Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $66.33 and a 52-week high of $87.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.57 billion, a PE ratio of 154.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.73.

Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.94 by ($0.35). Omnicom Group had a negative net margin of 0.32% and a positive return on equity of 25.65%. The company had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.41 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Omnicom Group Inc. will post 8.25 EPS for the current year.

Omnicom Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 11th. Omnicom Group’s payout ratio is currently 653.06%.

Omnicom Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 38.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Omnicom Group Company Profile

Omnicom Group Inc (NYSE: OMC) is a global marketing and corporate communications holding company headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1986 through the merger of the BBDO, DDB and Needham Harper agencies, Omnicom has built a portfolio of leading brands and networks serving clients across diverse industries.

The company’s primary business activities encompass advertising, strategic media planning and buying, digital and interactive marketing, direct and promotional marketing, public relations, and customer relationship management.