Investors See Ad-Agency Groups as Top AI Losers in European Media — Market Talk

Dow Jones Newswires

Investors see advertising-agency groups as the biggest losers from artificial intelligence within the European media sector, Barclays analysts say, citing their own survey. WPP, Omnicom and Publicis, in that order, ranked as the top three AI losers in a Barclays-sponsored survey conducted by Qualtrics, the analysts say. WPP and Omnicom are seen as AI losers by 74% and 70% of the survey respondents, and no respondents considers them AI winners, according to Barclays. Regarding Publicis, half of respondents put it as an AI loser, but 35% have a neutral view and 16% see it as a winner, Barclays says. "No major surprises for us here," the analysts say. "We agree with investors and believe that agencies are among the most challenged; we prefer Publicis to Omnicom and WPP." Publicis rises 1%, and WPP falls 2.4%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

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U.K. stocks higher at close of trade; Investing.com United Kingdom 100 up 0.09%

Investing.com

Investing.com – U.K. stocks were higher after the close on Thursday, as gains in the Industrial Engineering, Industrial Transportation and Mobile Telecommunications sectors led shares higher.

At the close in London, the Investing.com United Kingdom 100 gained 0.09%.

The best performers of the session on the Investing.com United Kingdom 100 were WPP PLC (LON:WPP), which rose 4.45% or 13.80 points to trade at 323.90 at the close. Meanwhile, Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC (LON:HIK) added 3.16% or 48.00 points to end at 1,568.00 and JD Sports Fashion PLC (LON:JD) was up 3.12% or 2.56 points to 84.62 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Admiral Group PLC (LON:ADML), which fell 4.61% or 136.00 points to trade at 2,812.00 at the close. BAE Systems PLC (LON:BAES) declined 3.73% or 77.00 points to end at 1,985.00 and ICG PLC (LON:ICGIN) was down 2.61% or 52.00 points to 1,940.00.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the London Stock Exchange by 1344 to 468 and 493 ended unchanged.

Gold Futures for February delivery was up 0.90% or 43.31 to $4,880.81 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in March fell 1.98% or 1.20 to hit $59.42 a barrel, while the March Brent oil contract fell 1.85% or 1.21 to trade at $64.03 a barrel.

GBP/USD was up 0.42% to 1.35, while EUR/GBP unchanged 0.01% to 0.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.34% at 98.22.

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WPP Experience Shows Replicating Publicis Won't Be Easy for Omnicom — Market Talk

Dow Jones Newswires

WPP's experience suggests replicating a model that allowed rival Publicis to win market share over the past six years won't be easy for Omnicom after its acquisition of Interpublic, J.P. Morgan analysts say in a research note. Both WPP and Omnicom are trying to replicate Publicis' model, which puts data at the heart of an offering of integrated capabilities enabled by AI, the analysts say. WPP's efforts to replicate the formula by restructuring and simplifying its offer show this is no easy task, according to JPM. "The integration of [Interpublic] and [Omnicom] is underway--it will be challenging to integrate and realize cost savings while maintaining client intensity, which could provide opportunities for WPP and Publicis to gain market share," the analysts say. Publicis shares rise 0.9%, while WPP falls 0.2%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

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WPP Ends 2025 on High Note — Market Talk

Dow Jones Newswires

WPP PLC

-1.34%

WPP bagged a series of accounts in the fourth quarter that allowed the U.K.-based advertising group to rise to the No. 1 spot in terms of net new business wins, according to J.P. Morgan. With net new business estimated at $2.46 billion, WPP beat Publicis' $2.18 billion to top out the table for the quarter, though Publicis retained the No. 1 position for the year as a whole, JPM says. WPP's account wins including Kenvue, Reckitt, and the U.K. government should result in a 50 basis point tailwind for the company's organic growth this year, JPM estimates. Nevertheless, it is too soon to say whether this is part of a recovery for WPP, as there is still the risk of a false dawn, according to JPM. WPP shares trade flat, while Publicis rises 1%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

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Ad Investors Should See AI Glass Half Full — Market Talk

Dow Jones Newswires

WPP PLC

-1.34%

Advertising stocks were held back by short-term concerns about the economy and longer-term risks stemming from artificial intelligence in 2025, but investors should feel better about both this year, J.P. Morgan analysts say in a research note. The economic picture is looking better now, particularly in the U.S. given the prospect of lower interest rates, tax cuts and inward investment, JPM says. "We also strongly believe that the AI glass is half full rather than half empty: it will make it faster and cheaper to do things that have been done in the past; and it will make new things possible for the first time, which will grow the addressable market," the analysts say. Publicis shares rise 1.6%, while WPP is up 0.2%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

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Stocks making big moves yesterday: Baldwin Insurance Group, Omnicom Group, Broadcom, Bank of America, and Trupanion

Stock Story

Broadcom

-3.83%

The Baldwin Insurance Group

Check out the companies making headlines yesterday:

Baldwin Insurance Group : Insurance distribution company Baldwin Insurance Group rose by 3.6% on Wednesday after the company announced it had acquired Obie, an insurance platform for landlords and real estate investors. See our full article here.

Omnicom Group : Global advertising giant Omnicom Group rose by 3.9% on Wednesday after BNP Paribas Exane adjusted its price target on the company to $120 from $115. See our full article here.

Broadcom : Fabless chip and software maker Broadcom fell by 4.6% on Wednesday after a flurry of negative news, including reports of a Chinese directive against U.S. software, a multi-billion dollar debt offering, and significant insider stock sales, weighed on the stock. See our full article here.

Bank of America : Financial services giant Bank of America fell by 4.6% on Wednesday after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings that topped analyst expectations, but broader concerns about potential government regulation of the banking sector weighed on the stock. See our full article here.

Trupanion : Pet insurance provider Trupanion fell by 3.7% on Wednesday after Cantor Fitzgerald lowered its price target on the stock. See our full article here.

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Omnicom Group (OMC) Stock Trades Up, Here Is Why

Stock Story

Omnicom Group

+1.69%

What Happened?

Shares of global advertising giant Omnicom Group jumped 3.9% in the afternoon session after BNP Paribas Exane adjusted its price target on the company to $120 from $115.

The financial services firm also maintained its "Outperform" rating on the stock. This action pointed to a more optimistic outlook from the analyst regarding the company's future share price performance. The move seemed to align with a broader positive sentiment, as other analysts had previously established a consensus "Buy" rating for Omnicom Group.

After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $80.59, up 4% from previous close.

What Is The Market Telling Us

Omnicom Group’s shares are not very volatile and have only had 6 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful, although it might not be something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 9 months ago when the stock dropped 5.2% on the news that stocks gave back some of the gains from the previous day as the White House clarified the tariffs on imports from China would add up to 145%, while the baseline 10% tariffs remained in place for most countries.

This added layer of uncertainty reminded investors that the global trade environment remained volatile, limiting the potential for sustained market gains.Also President Trump said he was willing to accept pain in the short term, and was aware his policies could cause a recession, but he remained more mindful of a more severe case of economic depression (higher unemployment and prolonged downturn). For investors, this suggested that the administration could prioritize long-term structural shifts over near-term economic stability, further increasing policy-driven risk in the markets.

Omnicom Group is flat since the beginning of the year, and at $80.59 per share, it is trading close to its 52-week high of $88.34 from January 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Omnicom Group’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,271.

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Investors See Ad-Agency Groups as Top AI Losers in European Media — Market Talk

U.K. stocks higher at close of trade; Investing.com United Kingdom 100 up 0.09%

WPP Experience Shows Replicating Publicis Won't Be Easy for Omnicom — Market Talk

WPP Ends 2025 on High Note — Market Talk

Ad Investors Should See AI Glass Half Full — Market Talk

Stocks making big moves yesterday: Baldwin Insurance Group, Omnicom Group, Broadcom, Bank of America, and Trupanion

Omnicom Group (OMC) Stock Trades Up, Here Is Why

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