UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 6-K
Report of Foreign Private Issuer
Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16
under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
For the Month of May 2017
Commission File Number: 0-16350
WPP plc
(Translation of registrant’s name into English)
27 Farm Street, London W1J 5RJ, England
(Address of principal executive offices)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F:
Form 20-F ☒ Form 40-F ☐
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1): ☐
Note: Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1) only permits the submission in paper of a Form 6-K if submitted solely to provide an attached annual report to security holders.
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7): ☐
Note: Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7) only permits the submission in paper of a Form 6-K if submitted to furnish a report or other document that the registrant foreign private issuer must furnish and make public under the laws of the jurisdiction in which the registrant is incorporated, domiciled or legally organized (the registrant’s “home country”), or under the rules of the home country exchange on which the registrant’s securities are traded, as long as the report or other document is not a press release, is not required to be and has not been distributed to the registrant’s security holders, and, if discussing a material event, has already been the subject of a Form 6-K submission or other Commission filing on EDGAR.
Forward-Looking Statements
In connection with the provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the “Reform Act”), WPP plc and its subsidiaries (the “Company”) may include forward-looking statements (as defined in the Reform Act) in oral or written public statements issued by or on behalf of the Company. These forward-looking statements may include, among other things, plans, objectives, projections and anticipated future economic performance based on assumptions and the like that are subject to risks and uncertainties. As such, actual results or outcomes may differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that may cause actual results to differ include but are not limited to: the unanticipated loss of a material client or key personnel, delays or reductions in client advertising budgets, shifts in industry rates of compensation, regulatory compliance costs or litigation, natural disasters or acts of terrorism, the Company’s exposure to changes in the values of major currencies other than the UK pound sterling (because a substantial portion of its revenues are derived and costs incurred outside of the United Kingdom) and the overall level of economic activity in the Company’s major markets (which varies depending on, among other things, regional, national and international political and economic conditions and government regulations in the world’s advertising markets). In addition, you should consider the risks described in Item 3D, captioned “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Form 20-F for the year ended 31 December 2016, which could also cause actual results to differ from forward-looking information. In light of these and other uncertainties, the forward-looking statements included in the oral or written public statements should not be regarded as a representation by the Company that the Company’s plans and objectives will be achieved.
The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
EXHIBIT INDEX
| Exhibit No. |
Description | |
| 1 | Announcement dated 25 May 2017, made by WPP plc. | |
| 2 | Announcement dated 26 May 2017, made by WPP plc. | |
| 3 | Press Release dated 30 May 2017, made by WPP plc. | |
| 4 | Announcement dated 30 May 2017, made by WPP plc. | |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| WPP PLC | ||||||
| (Registrant) | ||||||
| Date: 31 May 2017. | By: | /s/ Paul W.G. Richardson | ||||
| Paul W.G. Richardson | ||||||
| Group Finance Director | ||||||
Exhibit 1
Buy-back programme
Transaction in own shares
WPP plc (“WPP” or the “Company”) announces that on 25 May 2017 it purchased for treasury 200,000 of its ordinary shares at an average price of 1702.2379 pence per ordinary share. Details of the relevant repurchase transactions are set out below:
| Description of shares: |
WPP plc ordinary shares of 10 pence each | |
| Number of shares repurchased: |
200,000 | |
| Date of transaction: |
25 May 2017 | |
| Time of transaction: |
08:05 – 16:30 | |
| Price (pence): |
1702.2379 | |
| Trading venue: |
London Stock Exchange | |
| Broker: |
Merrill Lynch International | |
Following the above purchase, WPP holds 56,404,826 ordinary shares as treasury shares. The total number of WPP shares in issue is 1,275,866,546 (excluding shares to be held in treasury).
All transactions under this programme will be published on the Company’s website (www.wpp.com) on a daily basis.
Enquiries:
| Marie Capes, Company Secretary |
020 7408 2204 |
Exhibit 2
Buy-back programme
Transaction in own shares
WPP plc (“WPP” or the “Company”) announces that on 26 May 2017 it purchased for treasury 200,000 of its ordinary shares at an average price of 1730.6456 pence per ordinary share. Details of the relevant repurchase transactions are set out below:
| Description of shares: |
WPP plc ordinary shares of 10 pence each | |
| Number of shares repurchased: |
200,000 | |
| Date of transaction: |
26 May 2017 | |
| Time of transaction: |
08:05 – 16:30 | |
| Price (pence): |
1730.6456 | |
| Trading venue: |
London Stock Exchange | |
| Broker: |
Merrill Lynch International | |
Following the above purchase, WPP holds 56,604,826 ordinary shares as treasury shares. The total number of WPP shares in issue is 1,275,666,546 (excluding shares to be held in treasury).
All transactions under this programme will be published on the Company’s website (www.wpp.com) on a daily basis.
Enquiries:
| Marie Capes, Company Secretary |
020 7408 2204 |
Exhibit 3
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | 30 MAY 2017 |
WPP PLC (“WPP”)
WPP invests in digital content producer 88rising in the US
WPP announces that it has made a strategic investment in 88rising, Inc. (“88rising”), a US-based producer of digital content catering to the Asian millennial market.
88rising has branded and sponsored content deals with companies such as adidas, Maybelline and Revolve, an online fashion and cosmetics retailer. It employs approximately 15 people. It is based in New York with an office in Los Angeles, with plans to open an office in Shanghai. It was founded in 2015.
88rising is a multi-platform digital media company that focuses on content about Asia and Asian culture. To date, 88rising has produced over 500 hours of original content that has generated over 80 million total video views on Facebook and YouTube. More than half of 88rising’s 16-34-year-old viewers are in the Asia Pacific region.
The investment continues WPP’s strategy of focusing on three key areas that differentiate the Group’s offering to clients: technology, data and content. The Group has invested in multiple specialized digital content companies like Russell Simmons’ All Def Digital, a leader in producing and distributing music and digital content for the important-to-reach, urban-centric youth culture, and Refinery29, a leading fashion and lifestyle media company that provides content, shopping solutions and social networking opportunities in the fashion, shopping and beauty categories targeted towards millennial women. WPP has also invested in Woven Digital, which creates content for the millennial male market in the US, and Mitú, the digital media company focused on developing content for Latino youth in the US and worldwide. The Group has also strategic investments in Fullscreen, Indigenous Media, Imagina (a content rights and media company based in Spain), MRC and VICE.
WPP’s digital assets also include companies such as Acceleration (marketing technology consultancy), Cognifide (content management technology), Conexance (data cooperative), Salmon (e-commerce), and Hogarth (digital production technology). WPP also has investments in innovative technology services companies such as Globant and Mutual Mobile, as well as ad technology companies such as AppNexus, comScore (data investment management), Domo, mySupermarket, Percolate and ScrollMotion.
WPP’s roster of wholly owned digital agencies include AKQA, Blue State Digital, Essence, F.biz, Mirum, POSSIBLE, Triad Retail Media, VML and Wunderman.
WPP’s digital revenues were over US$7.5 billion in 2016, representing 39% of the Group’s total revenues of US$19.4 billion. WPP has set a target of 40-45% of revenue to be derived from digital in the next four to five years. In North America, WPP companies (including associates) collectively generate revenues of US$7.5 billion and employ almost 29,000 people.
Contact:
| Feona McEwan, WPP | +44(0) 20 7408 2204 | |
| Kevin McCormack, WPP | +1 (212) 632 2239 |
Exhibit 4
Buy-back programme
Transaction in own shares
WPP plc (“WPP” or the “Company”) announces that on 30 May 2017 it purchased for treasury 200,000 of its ordinary shares at an average price of 1746.0548 pence per ordinary share. Details of the relevant repurchase transactions are set out below:
| Description of shares: |
WPP plc ordinary shares of 10 pence each | |
| Number of shares repurchased: |
200,000 | |
| Date of transaction: |
30 May 2017 | |
| Time of transaction: |
08:15 – 16:30 | |
| Price (pence): |
1746.0548 | |
| Trading venue: |
London Stock Exchange | |
| Broker: |
Merrill Lynch International | |
Following the above purchase, WPP holds 56,804,826 ordinary shares as treasury shares. The total number of WPP shares in issue is 1,275,466,546 (excluding shares to be held in treasury).
All transactions under this programme will be published on the Company’s website (www.wpp.com) on a daily basis.
Enquiries:
| Marie Capes, Company Secretary |
020 7408 2204 |