Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Grows Stock Position in Omnicom Group Inc. $OMC

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in shares of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) by 15.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,252,790 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 165,125 shares during the quarter. Omnicom Group comprises approximately 1.6% of Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Omnicom Group were worth $101,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of Omnicom Group by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 129,755 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,579,000 after buying an additional 25,317 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Omnicom Group by 3.7% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 396,400 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,318,000 after purchasing an additional 14,155 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Omnicom Group by 155.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 91,116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,265,000 after purchasing an additional 55,421 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd purchased a new stake in Omnicom Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,376,000. Finally, Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its position in Omnicom Group by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 524,037 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $42,316,000 after purchasing an additional 133,093 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on OMC. Argus raised Omnicom Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Citigroup cut their target price on Omnicom Group from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on Omnicom Group in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $89.00 target price on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on Omnicom Group from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Omnicom Group from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Omnicom Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $99.00.

Omnicom Group Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE OMC opened at $77.26 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $75.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.73. The firm has a market cap of $22.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 198.10, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Omnicom Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $66.33 and a 52-week high of $87.17.

Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.85 billion. Omnicom Group had a net margin of 0.32% and a return on equity of 24.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 69.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.70 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Omnicom Group Inc. will post 10.97 EPS for the current year.

Omnicom Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 10th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Omnicom Group’s payout ratio is 820.51%.

Omnicom Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 18th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 38.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Omnicom Group Company Profile

Omnicom Group Inc (NYSE: OMC) is a global marketing and corporate communications holding company headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1986 through the merger of the BBDO, DDB and Needham Harper agencies, Omnicom has built a portfolio of leading brands and networks serving clients across diverse industries.

The company’s primary business activities encompass advertising, strategic media planning and buying, digital and interactive marketing, direct and promotional marketing, public relations, and customer relationship management.