WPP Stock Recent News

WPP issued two profit warnings this year amid a slowdown in ad spending from its tech clients. The company has been undergoing a massive transformation that has involved merging agencies.

WPP PLC (LSE:WPP) fell 1.1% after JPMorgan downgraded to ‘neutral' from ‘overweight' to reflect the slowing US macroeconomic environment.  The broker made the move in a sector review in which it said the outlook for 2024 is very similar to that 12 months ago.

WPP's trading updates continue to underwhelm. But there are silver linings beneath the surface. Valuation-wise, the bar is low, and WPP may finally be nearing a bottom.

WPP, one of the world's biggest advertising groups, delivered its second profit warning of the year after activity in China stuttered and companies in the technology sector reduced spending.

WPP PLC (LSE:WPP) has again warned that full-year revenue and profit margins will be lower than expected, as advertising spending fell in North America and China remained weak. The FTSE 100-listed ad giant revenues less pass-through costs fell 5% in the fourth quarter, although only 0.6% on a like-for-like (LFL) basis.

Four people linked to WPP-owned media agency GroupM have been questioned by authorities in Shanghai, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

WPP shares have dropped by a third since March, not helped by problems afflicting S4, the vehicle set up by Martin Sorrell the ad group's founder and former chief executive. UBS says that comparison is unfair on WPP due to S4 Capital's high exposure to technology clients, which accounts for approximately 44% of its client base.

WPP Group's financial performance has been weak, with lower revenue and margins over the past five years. The company's 2Q results were dismal due to a decrease in spending from their most important customer segment, tech companies in the US. Management has lowered their guidance for FY23, signaling a lack of confidence in the business and adding to the already weak revenue guidance.

S4 Capital PLC (LSE:SFOR)'s stock plummeted by 25% on Monday after the company downgraded its full-year 2023 organic growth expectations, sparking concerns about the ripple effects on other European advertising agencies such as Publicis SA and WPP PLC (LSE:WPP). The revised forecast for S4 Capital indicates a "likely down" scenario from a previous estimate of +2-4%, despite the company's net revenues for the first half of 2023 being broadly in line with expectations, said UBS in a note.

WPP PLC (NYSE:WPP ) Q2 2023 Earnings Conference Call August 4, 2023 4:30 AM ET Company Participants Mark Read - Chief Executive Officer Joanne Wilson - Chief Financial Officer Conference Call Participants Lisa Yang - Goldman Sachs Julien Roch - Barclays Matthew Walker - Credit Suisse Tom Singlehurst - Citi Mark Read Thank you very much and welcome everyone to WPP's First Half Results. I'm here in London with Joanne Wilson, our CFO at her first set of results; and Tom Waldron, who leads our Investor Relations team.