Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. Buys Shares of 85,363 Omnicom Group Inc. $OMC

Key Points

• Hudson Edge Investment Partners bought a new stake of 85,363 shares of Omnicom (NYSE:OMC) in Q4, valued at about $6.89 million.
• Omnicom's board approved a $5.00 billion stock buyback, authorizing repurchases of up to 38.1% of outstanding shares, suggesting management views the stock as potentially undervalued.
• Omnicom missed Q4 estimates, reporting $2.59 EPS vs. $2.94 expected and $5.53B revenue vs. $7.58B expected (revenue was up 27.9% YoY); the company also pays a $0.80 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~4.1%) with a reported payout ratio of 653%.

Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. bought a new stake in Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 85,363 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,893,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of OMC. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Omnicom Group by 82.9% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,917 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $138,000 after acquiring an additional 869 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new position in Omnicom Group in the second quarter valued at about $241,000. Gabelli Funds LLC bought a new position in Omnicom Group in the second quarter valued at about $1,061,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Omnicom Group by 5.3% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 29,373 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,113,000 after acquiring an additional 1,482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Omnicom Group by 14.1% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 361,266 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,990,000 after acquiring an additional 44,746 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.97% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on OMC shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Omnicom Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays lifted 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. Citigroup lifted their target price on Omnicom Group from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $77.00 target price (down from $87.00) on shares of Omnicom Group in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Argus upgraded Omnicom Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $95.86.

Omnicom Group Stock Performance

NYSE:OMC opened at $78.62 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $22.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 160.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock's 50-day moving average is $77.27 and its 200-day moving average is $76.86. Omnicom Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.33 and a 1-year high of $87.17.

Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.94 by ($0.35). The firm had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.58 billion. Omnicom Group had a positive return on equity of 25.65% and a negative net margin of 0.32%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.41 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Omnicom Group Inc. will post 8.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Omnicom Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 38.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Omnicom Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. Omnicom Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 653.06%.

About Omnicom Group

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.

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