The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Stake Cut by GTS Securities LLC

GTS Securities LLC reduced its holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 46.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,307 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,126 shares during the period. GTS Securities LLC’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 139.5% in 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 acquiring an additional 7,693,636 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 12,975,872 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $363,584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,492,019 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,938,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $362,538,000 after acquiring an additional 511,607 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,264,732 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $287,618,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,531,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $266,614,000 after acquiring an additional 81,996 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE IPG opened at $24.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $8.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.02. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.51 and a 52 week high of $33.05.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.98 billion. Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $155.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 100.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm’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 value of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. This trade represents 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 the SEC website. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IPG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.44.

Interpublic Group of Companies 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.