“As the bellwether of the advertising industry, WPP is widely regarded as a global economic barometer. The company offers a wide range of exposure to both digital media and global markets, and has seen its share price rally since October. The growing importance of emerging markets and digital media to the company looks set to continue, allied to improving dividends, earnings momentum and a steady flow of acquisitions.

Despite a trading update in October warning that clients remain cautious over the group’s advertising spend, like for like sales rose by 3% in Q3. Furthermore, the recent strength in the dollar in conjunction with the weakness of the pound could see the group’s earnings receive a boost in 2015.

“We recommend WPP as a ‘buy’ for long term investors with a balanced portfolio. New technology should help open up avenues for growth for the group over the longer term. This is reflected in new media related business becoming WPP’s fastest growing area. Currently the shares trade on around 14.6 times 2015 forecast earnings, which does not appear overly expensive.”