Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) Shares Sold by First Merchants Corp

First Merchants Corp cut its holdings in Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC - Free Report) by 14.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,136 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,579 shares during the quarter. First Merchants Corp's holdings in Omnicom Group were worth $2,167,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Omnicom Group by 157.9% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 7,661 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $635,000 after buying an additional 4,690 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Omnicom Group by 13.9% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 7,459 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $618,000 after buying an additional 913 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Omnicom Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,357,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Omnicom Group by 10.4% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 81,474 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,755,000 after buying an additional 7,665 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Omnicom Group by 146.6% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 328 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. 91.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on OMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Omnicom Group from $116.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Omnicom Group in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Omnicom Group from $117.00 to $104.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America raised Omnicom Group from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Barclays cut Omnicom Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $96.43.

Omnicom Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE OMC traded up $0.67 during trading on Monday, reaching $72.03. The company had a trading volume of 3,081,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,568,142. Omnicom Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.37 and a twelve month high of $107.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $73.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.07. Omnicom Group had a return on equity of 34.85% and a net margin of 9.20%. The company had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.73 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Omnicom Group Inc. will post 8.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Omnicom Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.89%. Omnicom Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.30%.

Omnicom Group 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.