Royal Bank of Canada Has $93.52 Million Position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Royal Bank of Canada lowered its position in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,337,441 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 166,876 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.90% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $93,517,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 32,335 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $906,000 after purchasing an additional 3,345 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $151,000. Redwood Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 62,467 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,750,000 after buying an additional 2,362 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $685,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company's stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of IPG stock opened at $25.46 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $25.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $9.41 billion, a PE ratio of 13.91 and a beta of 1.09. The 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect 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 repurchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. This represents a 13.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Argus lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $33.44.

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.

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