Raymond James Financial Inc. Purchases Shares of 169,724 WPP plc (NYSE:WPP)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 169,724 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $8,724,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.08% of WPP at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in WPP by 52,800.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 529 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 528 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in WPP by 453.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,179 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 966 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WPP by 92.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of WPP during the 3rd quarter worth about $84,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of WPP during the 4th quarter worth about $202,000. 4.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays downgraded shares of WPP from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of WPP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th.

WPP Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of WPP stock opened at $40.36 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.06 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.34. WPP plc has a 12-month low of $38.90 and a 12-month high of $57.37.

WPP Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a dividend yield of 6.2%. This is a boost from WPP’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.95. WPP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.04%.

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.