Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Trims Stock Position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lessened its holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 84,957 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,715 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $2,361,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 1.3% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 32,609 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,031,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 55,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Proactive Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Proactive Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 11,094 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 607 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 11,507 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $322,000 after buying an additional 630 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, 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 SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of IPG stock opened at $26.47 on Monday. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $25.93 and a one year high of $33.29. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.04). Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is 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 paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.99%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Argus downgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Monday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

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.