Alliancebernstein L.P. Boosts Stock Position in Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) $IPG

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 149.0%, owning approximately 2.63 million shares worth $71,476,000 at the end of Q1.
• Analysts have given Interpublic Group a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average price target of $32.01, despite mixed reviews on target price adjustments by firms like Barclays and UBS.
• Interpublic Group recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.33, reflecting a 4.9% dividend yield, with a payout ratio currently at 111.86%.

Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 149.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,631,682 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,574,777 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.71% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $71,476,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 1,219.5% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 2,164 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 20.0% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,349 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Down 1.1%

IPG traded down $0.31 on Friday, reaching $26.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,316,785 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,028,826. The company has a market capitalization of $9.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.37 and a beta of 1.09. Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $22.51 and a fifty-two week high of $33.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $25.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.23.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.15 billion. Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 28.72% and a net margin of 4.27%.The business's revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.61 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.0%. Interpublic Group of Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 111.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on IPG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Interpublic Group of Companies from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays lowered Interpublic Group of Companies from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $34.00 to $27.50 in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Interpublic Group of Companies from $27.00 to $25.60 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.01.

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.