WPP (NYSE:WPP) Sees Large Volume Increase

WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . 312,987 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 81% from the previous session’s volume of 173,272 shares.The stock last traded at $49.88 and had previously closed at $50.25.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on WPP. StockNews.com upgraded WPP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. UBS Group downgraded WPP from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.00.

WPP Trading Up 1.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $46.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.35.

WPP Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a $0.244 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 5.3%.

Institutional Trading of WPP

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WPP. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of WPP by 48.2% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 864 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in WPP by 54.0% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 973 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its position in WPP by 7.1% during the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 5,027 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its position in WPP by 4.2% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 36,741 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,638,000 after buying an additional 1,478 shares during the period. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lifted its position in WPP by 6.1% during the third quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 65,213 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,907,000 after buying an additional 3,762 shares during the period. 4.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.