KBC Group NV Sells 17,744 Shares of Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:IPG)

KBC Group NV decreased its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 17.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 85,274 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 17,744 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $2,316,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in IPG. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG bought a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, Barclays cut shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $34.00 to $27.50 in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $32.72.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Down 0.9%

IPG stock traded down $0.24 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $25.14. 4,261,806 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,856,722. The firm's 50-day moving average is $24.36 and its 200-day moving average is $25.93. The company has a market cap of $9.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.51 and a 12 month high of $33.05.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 27.21% and a net margin of 4.69%. Interpublic Group of Companies's quarterly revenue was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.25%. Interpublic Group of Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 100.76%.

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.