The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank trimmed its holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,061,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 60,300 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.28% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $29,729,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp grew 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 acquiring an additional 3,920,975 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,938,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $362,538,000 after acquiring an additional 511,607 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,449,534 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $298,107,000 after acquiring an additional 81,265 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 25,637.0% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 7,403,256 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $207,439,000 after acquiring an additional 7,374,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 133.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 5,402,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $150,393,000 after acquiring an additional 3,089,387 shares during the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Interpublic Group of Companies

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm’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 value of $574,672.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. This trade represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of IPG stock opened at $26.23 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $9.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 1.14. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.93 and a 1-year high of $33.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $27.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $29.24.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its board has approved a stock 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 buy up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.03%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s payout ratio is 72.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on IPG shares. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Argus lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Monday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies 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.