Curat Global LLC Acquires Shares of 11,700 The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 11,700 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $318,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 45.8% in the 4th quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 17,500 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $490,000 after buying an additional 5,500 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 327,086 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $9,189,000 after buying an additional 51,051 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 12,430 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $348,000 after buying an additional 1,800 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 83,853 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,350,000 after buying an additional 6,616 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $282,000. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on IPG. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. 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. UBS Group upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $33.44.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Down 1.3%

Interpublic Group of Companies stock opened at $22.65 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $8.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37 and a beta of 1.06. 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 company's 50-day moving average price is $24.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.83. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.51 and a 52 week high of $33.05.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.98 billion. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. Interpublic Group of Companies's quarterly revenue was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.36 EPS. On average, analysts expect that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.83%. Interpublic Group of Companies's payout ratio is 100.76%.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan 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 reacquire up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Interpublic Group of Companies

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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