Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) $IPG Shares Bought by AQR Arbitrage LLC

Key Points

• AQR Arbitrage LLC significantly increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies, acquiring over 1.19 million shares and raising its ownership by 158.5% in the first quarter.
• Interpublic Group's latest quarterly results showed a 6.6% decline in revenue year-over-year, despite beating EPS projections with earnings of $0.75 per share.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33, with a dividend yield of 5.0% and a payout ratio of 111.86%.

AQR Arbitrage LLC raised its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 158.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,952,307 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,197,102 shares during the quarter. Interpublic Group of Companies accounts for about 1.2% of AQR Arbitrage LLC's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. AQR Arbitrage LLC owned approximately 0.53% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $52,527,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies during the first quarter worth $44,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 1,219.5% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 2,164 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group grew its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 20.0% during 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.43% of the company's stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE IPG traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $26.93. 1,640,876 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,788,855. The business's 50 day moving average is $25.60 and its 200-day moving average is $25.23. Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.51 and a 12-month high of $33.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.79 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07.

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

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. Interpublic Group of Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 111.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IPG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Interpublic Group of Companies to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Interpublic Group of Companies from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $34.00 to $27.50 in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Interpublic Group of Companies from $27.00 to $25.60 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.