WPP faces US class action lawsuit over alleged misleading financial statements

Ad holding company WPP is at the center of a proposed class action lawsuit in the United States, following allegations that the company misled investors about its financial outlook and client growth. The lawsuit claims that WPP violated provisions of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including §§10(b) and 20(a), as well as SEC Rule 10b-5. The suit targets investors who purchased WPP securities between February 27, 2025, and July 8, 2025.

According to the complaint, WPP publicly asserted that its revenue projections were based on reliable information and suggested that it could maintain steady growth while managing seasonal risks and other market factors. The company also highlighted its ability to win new clients and retain existing ones.

However, the lawsuit contends that these statements were false and materially misleading. When the market later learned that WPP had not met its stated growth targets, investors allegedly suffered financial losses.

Law firms specializing in securities class actions encouraged affected shareholders to contact the firms to discuss potential participation in the case.

The class has not yet been certified, meaning investors are not currently represented by an attorney in the matter. Shareholders who take no action will remain absent class members but could still be affected by the outcome of the litigation.

US law firms have released the following case details:

A class action has commenced in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of shareholders of WPP plc who purchased common stock between February 27, 2025 and July 8, 2025.

Class Definition

This lawsuit seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired WPP securities between February 27, 2025 and July 8, 2025, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period").

Case Details

The Complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Defendants provided overwhelmingly positive statements to investors regarding WPP's media arm; (2) At the same time, Defendants concealed material adverse facts about the true state of WPP's media operations, including its inability to effectively manage ongoing macroeconomic challenges and compete in the marketplace; (3) WPP's media arm had begun to lose significant market share to competitors; (4) The omission of these material facts rendered Defendants' statements about WPP's business, operations, and prospects materially false and misleading at all relevant times; (5) As a result, Plaintiff and other shareholders purchased WPP's securities at artificially inflated prices.

Allegations

According to the complaint, defendants provided overwhelmingly positive statements to investors while, at the same time, disseminating materially false and misleading statements and/or concealing material adverse facts concerning the true state of WPP's media arm; notably, that it was not truly equipped to handle the ongoing macroeconomic challenges while competing effectively and had instead begun to lose significant market share to its competitors. On July 9, 2025, WPP published a trading update for the first half of 2025, alerting investors that the company had allegedly "seen a deterioration in performance as Q2 has progressed." The Company attributed its misfortune to both "continued macro uncertainty weighing on client spend and weaker net new business than originally anticipated," at least in part due to "some distraction to the business" as a result of the continued restructuring of WPP Media a.k.a. GroupM. Following this news, the price of WPP's common stock declined dramatically. From a closing market price of $35.82 per share on July 8, 2025, WPP's stock price fell to $29.34 per share on July 9, 2025, a decline of about 18.1% in the span of just a single day.