WPP plc American Depositary Shares (WPP) fair value
Communication Services · Advertising Agencies · NYSE · United States
$26.54-0.64%
Market cap $5.8BNext earnings 2026-08-06Updated Oct 21, 2026
Our verdict
Trades 17% above our fair value
Price
$26.54
Model fair valueConfidence: good
$22.76
Model range
$7.26 to $41.82
Fair value $22.76
Price $26.54
3 models fit WPP plc American Depositary Shares and they disagree: 0 of 3 land within 15% of the average.
Two or more of our models back this value.
Premium(i)Silver63
Valued as a mature, profitable company: Discounted cash flow, P/E comparison, EV/EBITDA comparison, and Dividend discount.
ACCE opinionWPP plc American Depositary Shares (WPP)
Fair value (3 models)
$22.76
ACCE price target
$28.00
Rating
Overvalued
Horizon
12 months
Fair value published on 21 Oct 2026, 12:04 CEST; previously $24.35 since 17 Oct 2026, 00:00 CEST.
ACCE price target published on 18 Oct 2026, 01:52 CEST; previously $24.00 since 28 Sept 2026, 00:00 CEST.
Rating published on 21 Oct 2026, 12:04 CEST.
Price used: $26.54 at the close on 23 Oct 2026, 22:00 CEST.
Models: Discounted cash flow, EV/EBITDA comparison, and Dividend discount.
Fair value: the average of the applicable valuation models (discounted cash flow, multiples, residual income, dividend discount, shareholder yield), each run on the latest financial statements and the market price shown. Opinion columns (fair value, target, rating) are shown apart from the data. Full methodology: acceinvestments.com/data/how-we-value-stocks
Conflicts of interest: The author holds no personal position in this security. General statement
Produced by ACCE Investments (acceinvestments.com)
Data
Price vs fair value
16.6% above
-14.2% to fair value
ACCE score
53
out of 100
Analysts
0% buy
3 covering
P/E
0.0x
forward 4.4x
1-year return
+11.0%
Dividend yield
3.75%
WPP plc American Depositary Shares in four questions
Plain answers, details below
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Overview
ACCE thesis
WPP plc (ADS: WPP) is one of the world's largest advertising holding companies, running media buying through GroupM and creative and account work through agencies such as Ogilvy and VML, with the bulk of its revenue coming from large multinational clients. Its scale in media buying is the main structural asset, since purchasing volume gives it negotiating leverage with publishers and platforms, but that advantage has been eroding as clients consolidate agency roster decisions and as digital platforms take more of the ad budget directly. Revenue fell 4.4% in the latest period and operating margin of 4.1% is thin, so the near-term case depends on whether cost restructuring and client wins can stabilise organic growth. At a forward P/E of 6.9 the shares screen cheaply against the sector, but the trailing ROE of -6.6% and a 15.9% gross margin mean the discount reflects real deterioration rather than a mispricing we can yet confirm. The name warrants a deeper look only if the work focuses on organic growth trajectory and free cash flow conversion, not on the headline multiple.
⚠ Investor warnings · 4 flagsAI-assisted·How I use AI
high
Negative earnings and ROE
Net margin -1.8%, ROE -6.6%, earnings down 57.5% YoY. Company is unprofitable despite positive operating margin.
high
High leverage with weak profitability
Debt/Equity 2.58 combined with negative net margin and ROE creates refinancing risk if conditions deteriorate further.
high
Structural revenue decline
Revenue down 4.4% YoY and 5-year CAGR of -4.8%. Recent QoQ bounce (+10%) may not reverse long-term trend.
moderate
Valuation disconnect
EV/EBITDA 55.9x is extremely elevated for a shrinking, unprofitable business. Fair value estimate $24.00 vs current $25.38 offers minimal margin of safety.
AI research notes
AI-assisted·How I use AIWritten Oct 11, 2026 · figures from 2026-06-30 · prices to Oct 23, 2026
Why it could do well
Free cash flow yield of 18.0% suggests the market has priced in excessive pessimism about WPP's cash generation.
Forward P/E of 6.7x is deeply discounted, and management has reduced share count by 1.9% to support shareholder value.
WPP generated GBP 744M in free cash flow last twelve months, supporting a 4.0% dividend yield.
Why it could disappoint
Revenue has declined 4.4% year over year and 4.8% on a five-year average, showing structural headwinds.
Negative net margin of -1.8% and negative ROE of -6.6% mean the company is destroying shareholder value.
Debt to equity of 2.58 leaves little room to maneuver if revenue declines further or cash flow weakens.
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Valuation
INVESTOR
Where WPP's valuation models land
Price
$26.54
Model fair value
$22.76
Model range
$7.26 to $41.82
Fair value $22.76
Price $26.54
The price sits inside the model range.
Model
Fair value
Upside
Discounted cash flow
Dividend discount
EV/EBITDA comparison
P/E comparison
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Quality
INVESTOR
Quality and conviction INVESTOR FEATURE
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