Brandes Investment Partners LP Sells 11,010 Shares of WPP plc (NYSE:WPP)

Brandes Investment Partners LP lowered its holdings in WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 598,396 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 11,010 shares during the quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP’s holdings in WPP were worth $30,758,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in WPP by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 27,798 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,429,000 after purchasing an additional 8,140 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WPP during the 4th quarter worth approximately $194,000. Ceera Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of WPP by 30.0% during the 4th quarter. Ceera Investments LLC now owns 16,060 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $825,000 after acquiring an additional 3,705 shares in the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WPP during the 4th quarter worth approximately $569,000. Finally, Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of WPP by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 17,402 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $894,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 4.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on WPP shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of WPP from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Barclays lowered shares of WPP from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets upgraded shares of WPP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th.

WPP Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WPP opened at $39.91 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $8.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.68, a PEG ratio of 7.06 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.60. WPP plc has a one year low of $38.90 and a one year high of $57.37.

WPP Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 7th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.9728 dividend. This is an increase from WPP’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a yield of 6.2%. WPP’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.04%.

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.