The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

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

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on IPG. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Interpublic Group of Companies stock opened at $23.98 on Friday. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 52 week low of $22.51 and a 52 week high of $33.05. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $26.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.44. The stock has a market cap of $8.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.10 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last issued 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 net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. On average, equities analysts predict that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s payout ratio is currently 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase 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 repurchase up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,845,263.86. The trade was a 13.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Interpublic Group of Companies

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the first quarter worth $31,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG bought a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 3,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 573 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.