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

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

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Argus cut shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.44.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE IPG opened at $25.11 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.28 billion, a PE ratio of 13.72 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a fifty day moving average of $25.39 and a 200 day moving average of $27.47. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 1 year low of $22.51 and a 1 year high of $33.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.03. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. The company had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $155.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Interpublic Group of Companies

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 13.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Interpublic Group of Companies

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 18.3% during the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 10,330 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 1,601 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 32.0% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,972,412 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $135,051,000 after acquiring an additional 1,206,542 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,781,455 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $374,304,000 after purchasing an additional 842,925 shares during the last quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,317,000. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,273,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.