The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Receives $33.50 Average PT from Analysts

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the nine research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.50.

IPG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Argus cut Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE IPG opened at $26.51 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $27.53 and its 200 day moving average is $29.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 12 month low of $25.85 and a 12 month high of $33.27. The stock has a market cap of $9.88 billion, a PE ratio of 14.48 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.04). Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. Research analysts predict that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.98%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. The trade was a 13.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Interpublic Group of Companies

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of IPG. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 139.5% during the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 13,210,446 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $370,157,000 after purchasing an additional 7,693,636 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 25,637.0% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 7,403,256 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $207,439,000 after acquiring an additional 7,374,491 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,844,859 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $943,993,000 after acquiring an additional 3,920,975 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 133.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 5,402,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $150,393,000 after acquiring an additional 3,089,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 12,548.6% in the 4th quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 2,425,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $67,955,000 after acquiring an additional 2,406,073 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Company Profile

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc provides advertising and marketing services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Media, Data & Engagement Solutions, Integrated Advertising & Creativity Led Solutions, and Specialized Communications & Experiential Solutions. The Media, Data & Engagement Solutions segment provides media and communications services, digital services and products, advertising and marketing technology, e-commerce services, data management and analytics, strategic consulting, and digital brand experience under the IPG Mediabrands, UM, Initiative, Kinesso, Acxiom, Huge, MRM, and R/GA brand names.