19,000 Shares in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Purchased by One68 Global Capital LLC

One68 Global Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 19,000 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $532,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 55,595 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,558,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 21,236 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $595,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% during the 4th 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. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 3,341 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 573 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 59,844 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,677,000 after buying an additional 587 shares during the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $3,845,263.86. This trade represents a 13.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IPG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $38.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.44.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Shares of IPG stock opened at $25.01 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.67 and a beta of 1.01. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $22.51 and a 1 year high of $33.05. 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 firm's 50 day moving average is $25.72 and its 200-day moving average is $27.83.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.03. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. The firm had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.36 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.28%. Interpublic Group of Companies's payout ratio is presently 100.76%.

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.

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