Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

Investment analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) in a report released on Thursday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on IPG. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Argus lowered Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:IPG opened at $24.57 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $26.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.40. The stock has a market cap of $9.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.43 and a beta of 1.01. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 52-week low of $22.51 and a 52-week high of $33.05. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (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%. Equities analysts predict that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $155.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Interpublic Group of Companies

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of IPG. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised 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 worth $370,157,000 after purchasing an additional 7,693,636 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 25,637.0% during the fourth 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. Amundi lifted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 133.6% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 12,548.6% in the fourth quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 2,425,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $67,955,000 after acquiring an additional 2,406,073 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,794,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

About Interpublic Group of Companies

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.