Ceera Investments LLC Makes New Investment in WPP plc (NYSE:WPP)

Ceera Investments LLC bought a new stake in WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 10,020 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $459,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD increased its stake in shares of WPP by 46.5% in the first quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 3,350,015 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $158,791,000 after purchasing an additional 1,062,708 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of WPP by 40.5% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,155,648 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $54,974,000 after acquiring an additional 332,914 shares during the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its stake in shares of WPP by 47.9% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 567,653 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,003,000 after acquiring an additional 183,955 shares during the last quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of WPP by 188.2% during the first quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 72,351 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,429,000 after buying an additional 47,249 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of WPP in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,860,000. Institutional investors own 4.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of WPP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 2nd. Citigroup upgraded shares of WPP to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.00.

WPP Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:WPP traded down $0.86 during trading on Friday, reaching $48.35. 220,626 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 168,361. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.89. WPP plc has a 12-month low of $41.13 and a 12-month high of $54.21. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $46.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.95.

WPP Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 11th will be given a $0.954 dividend. This is a boost from WPP’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 5.7%.

About WPP

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.