WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) Position Increased by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,093 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,784 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in WPP were worth $1,084,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in WPP by 45.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 6,397 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $335,000 after buying an additional 2,007 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in 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. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of WPP by 22.5% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 19,658 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,001,000 after purchasing an additional 3,615 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of WPP by 67.6% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 55,963 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,863,000 after purchasing an additional 22,578 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of WPP by 66.1% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 34,950 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,788,000 after purchasing an additional 13,912 shares in the last quarter. 4.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WPP Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of WPP stock opened at $39.58 on Tuesday. WPP plc has a 52 week low of $38.90 and a 52 week high of $57.37. The stock has a market cap of $8.54 billion, a PE ratio of 6.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.06 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $44.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.31.

WPP Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on WPP shares. Barclays cut shares of WPP from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Kepler Capital Markets raised WPP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

WPP 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.