The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Short Interest Up 8.0% in December

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 24,450,000 shares, an increase of 8.0% from the December 15th total of 22,630,000 shares. Currently, 6.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,540,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days.

Institutional Trading of Interpublic Group of Companies

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,844,859 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $943,993,000 after purchasing an additional 3,920,975 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 571.7% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,466,376 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $42,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248,062 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 19.8% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,436,803 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $158,157,000 after acquiring an additional 899,332 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 168.3% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 831,434 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $24,186,000 after purchasing an additional 521,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 177.3% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 705,703 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,321,000 after purchasing an additional 451,205 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock traded down $0.06 during trading on Friday, hitting $27.84. 5,109,237 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,438,917. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $28.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.13 and a beta of 1.11. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 1-year low of $26.30 and a 1-year high of $35.17.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 7.44% and a return on equity of 27.76%. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.74%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on IPG shares. Barclays reduced their price target on Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.50 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. BNP Paribas raised 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. lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $36.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.50.

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.