Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Wednesday.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on OMC. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Omnicom Group from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Omnicom Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Omnicom Group from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and increased their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Friday, December 15th. Macquarie upgraded shares of Omnicom Group from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and increased their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Omnicom Group in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a buy rating and a $117.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Omnicom Group currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $101.33.

Omnicom Group Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of OMC stock opened at $96.76 on Wednesday. Omnicom Group has a 52-week low of $72.20 and a 52-week high of $99.23. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.40. The company has a market capitalization of $19.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.98, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.04. Omnicom Group had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 39.07%. The firm had revenue of $4.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Omnicom Group will post 7.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Omnicom Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 8th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. Omnicom Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.46%.

Insider Transactions at Omnicom Group

In related news, Director Linda Johnson Rice sold 507 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total transaction of $43,936.62. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,753 shares in the company, valued at $845,194.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Omnicom Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aviva PLC boosted its position in shares of Omnicom Group by 406.1% in the third quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 126,306 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,407,000 after purchasing an additional 101,348 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Omnicom Group in the third quarter worth approximately $200,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new position in shares of Omnicom Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $21,936,000. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. boosted its position in shares of Omnicom Group by 1.9% in the third quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 167,486 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,474,000 after purchasing an additional 3,043 shares during the period. Finally, Vest Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Omnicom Group by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 148,496 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,846,000 after purchasing an additional 29,339 shares during the period. 91.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Omnicom Group Company Profile

Omnicom Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, offers advertising, marketing, and corporate communications services. It provides a range of services in the areas of advertising and media, precision marketing, commerce and branding, experiential, execution and support, public relations, and healthcare.