The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $35.13.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on IPG. Barclays raised their target price on Interpublic Group of Companies from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. UBS Group began coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Interpublic Group of Companies from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 9th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Andrew Bonzani sold 40,468 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total value of $1,303,069.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 70,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,878.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Andrew Bonzani sold 40,468 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total value of $1,303,069.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 70,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,878.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 40,393 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total value of $1,300,654.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 88,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,844,870. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 249,646 shares of company stock valued at $8,038,601 over the last ninety days. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Interpublic Group of Companies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IPG. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 12.1% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,096,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $459,975,000 after purchasing an additional 1,516,975 shares during the last quarter. Black Creek Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 14.1% during the 3rd quarter. Black Creek Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,722,563 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $278,649,000 after purchasing an additional 1,204,630 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,620,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 24.6% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,635,459 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $132,852,000 after acquiring an additional 916,574 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,922,608 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $225,954,000 after acquiring an additional 777,456 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:IPG opened at $31.16 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $31.35. The firm has a market cap of $11.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.93, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 52-week low of $27.20 and a 52-week high of $40.95.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.01. Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 30.52% and a net margin of 10.09%. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $0.33 dividend. This is an increase from Interpublic Group of Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.32%.

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.