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Dublin, Ireland based WPP Group Plc (WPPGY) recently announced that it will make a strategic investment in leading motorsport marketing agency, Just Marketing International (JMI). 

Founded in 1995, JMI is the global leader in motorsports marketing. The company was founded by its CEO Zak Brown. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the company has a broad portfolio of global brands with presence in all key international motorsports series.

The client list for the company included Boehringer Ingelheim, Castrol, Crown Royal, DIRECTV (DTV), Farmers Insurance, FXDD, Diageo (DEO), LG Electronics, UBS, SUBWAY Restaurants, United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) and Verizon Wireless (VZ). The agency's clients participate in all major motorsports series, including NASCAR, Formula 1, IndyCar, FIA GT1 World Championship and the American Le Mans Series. 

The principal shareholder for the company is Spire Capital, which took a majority stake in 2008. Zak Brown is the second largest shareholder. WPP has taken a minor stake and will have a representation on the board of JMI, with the Credit Suisse Customized Fund Investment Group, part of Credit Suisse, completing the shareholder group.

Through this strategic investment, WPP will get direct access to the motorsports world while JMI will have access to WPP”s global network. Management at WPP stated that the marketing power of international motorsports is phenomenal. Being a leading company in this sector, JMI is a natural fit for WPP and will enable the latter to offer its clients exciting new opportunities in the field of motorsports.

WPP Group Plc together with its subsidiaries provides advertising and communications services worldwide. We believe that the company’s focus on new markets, new media and consumer insights combined with pricing power will ensure both margin improvement and future growth in profit. However, operations within a highly competitive industry with significant exposure to the US markets and excessive dependence on clients are the company’s chief concerns.

We maintain our Outperform recommendation. However, the stock carries a Zacks #3 Rank, which translates into a short-term rating of Hold. 

 
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