OFI Invest Asset Management Buys Shares of 1,347 The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 1,347 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $36,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of IPG. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% during the fourth 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. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 243,700.0% in the third quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 2,437 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AM Squared Ltd grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 63.2% in the third quarter. AM Squared Ltd now owns 3,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. This represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on IPG shares. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of IPG stock opened at $28.22 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.44. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $26.15 and a twelve month high of $35.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.42 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.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its quarterly 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.13%.

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.