WPP (NYSE:WPP) Shares Down 1.6% - Here's Why

Shares of WPP plc (NYSE:WPP - Get Free Report) fell 1.6% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $40.02 and last traded at $39.91. 48,617 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 247,590 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on WPP. StockNews.com cut shares of WPP from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Barclays cut shares of WPP from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets upgraded shares of WPP from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

WPP Trading Up 0.1 %

The business's 50 day moving average price is $45.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.52. The company has a market cap of $8.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.76, a PEG ratio of 7.06 and a beta of 1.20.

WPP Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 7th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.9728 per share. This represents a yield of 6.2%. This is a positive change from WPP's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. WPP's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.04%.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On WPP

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WPP. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of WPP by 47.9% during the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 5,356,064 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $274,016,000 after purchasing an additional 1,734,750 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of WPP during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,757,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of WPP by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,623,960 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $83,472,000 after purchasing an additional 172,212 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WPP during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $8,724,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of WPP by 83.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 253,640 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $13,037,000 after purchasing an additional 115,416 shares during the last quarter. 4.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

WPP Company Profile

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.