Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 611 Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 117,333 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 611 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $3,288,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in IPG. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings 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 valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter valued at $107,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter worth $206,000. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 72.9% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 6,529 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $207,000 after buying an additional 2,752 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Interpublic Group of Companies stock opened at $26.11 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.27 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.85 and a 12-month high of $33.05.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.05%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its Board of Directors has approved 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 reacquire up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on IPG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Argus lowered Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Interpublic Group of Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,845,263.86. The trade was a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.