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

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) in a report published on Saturday. The firm issued a hold rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on IPG. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Argus lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Interpublic Group of Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Up 1.4 %

Interpublic Group of Companies stock opened at $27.40 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.97 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. Interpublic Group of Companies has a fifty-two week low of $26.30 and a fifty-two week high of $35.17. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $27.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.62.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Interpublic Group of Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empirical Finance LLC increased its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 32,609 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,031,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares during the period. West Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 55,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,558,000 after buying an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 21,236 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $595,000 after buying an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 20.7% in the 4th 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. 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.