The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Shares Bought by Advisors Asset Management Inc.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 14.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 486,812 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 60,463 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $13,640,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. West Oak Capital LLC increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 55,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Proactive Wealth Strategies LLC increased its stake in 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 worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 607 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in 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 worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the period. Finally, International Private Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,422 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 635 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Interpublic Group of Companies stock opened at $26.23 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.24. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $25.93 and a 12 month 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 stock has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a PE ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its 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 return on equity of 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. Equities analysts predict 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s payout ratio is 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IPG has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Monday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Argus downgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.50.

Insider Transactions 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 transaction of $574,672.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,845,263.86. This represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

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.