WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) Announces Semi-annual Dividend of $0.97

WPP plc (NYSE:WPP) announced a semi-annual dividend on Friday, February 28th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of 0.9728 per share by the business services provider on Friday, July 4th. This represents a dividend yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This is a positive change from WPP’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.95.

WPP has increased its dividend payment by an average of 11.1% per year over the last three years. WPP has a dividend payout ratio of 32.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect WPP to earn $5.44 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.95 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 35.8%.

WPP Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of WPP stock traded down $0.50 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $40.56. 1,023,998 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 225,300. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.98. The company has a market cap of $8.75 billion, a PE ratio of 6.79, a PEG ratio of 7.06 and a beta of 1.25. WPP has a twelve month low of $40.14 and a twelve month high of $57.37.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays downgraded WPP from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com cut shares of WPP from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of WPP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th.

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.