Ethic Inc. Sells 30,539 Shares of Wpp Plc $WPP

Ethic Inc. lessened its holdings in Wpp Plc (NYSE:WPP) by 63.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 30,539 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in WPP were worth $648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in WPP by 184.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 15,729 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $808,000 after acquiring an additional 10,197 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in WPP by 57.0% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,168 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 787 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in WPP by 160.7% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,368 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $173,000 after acquiring an additional 2,076 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in WPP during the 4th quarter worth approximately $309,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in WPP by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 484,996 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $24,928,000 after acquiring an additional 35,412 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 4.34% of the company’s stock.

WPP Stock Performance

Shares of WPP stock opened at $26.5150 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $30.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.91. Wpp Plc has a 52 week low of $24.28 and a 52 week high of $57.37.

WPP Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.5033 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 1,060.0%. WPP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on WPP. Kepler Capital Markets lowered shares of WPP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of WPP in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of WPP from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of WPP in a report on Friday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

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.