9,091 Shares in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Acquired by Stokes Family Office LLC

Stokes Family Office LLC acquired a new position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 9,091 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $255,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in 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 worth $31,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter worth approximately $60,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings 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 worth $78,000 after buying an additional 2,437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter worth approximately $107,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Up 0.4 %

IPG opened at $26.66 on Thursday. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.85 and a 1-year high of $33.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.57 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a 50 day moving average of $27.55 and a 200-day moving average of $29.18.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.95%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s payout ratio is 72.13%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IPG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Monday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.50.

Insider Activity at Interpublic Group of Companies

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares in the company, 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 SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.