Westchester Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) $IPG

Key Points

• Westchester Capital Management LLC has significantly increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies, raising its investment by 194.7% to approximately $35.69 million—making it the firm's 12th largest position.
• Interpublic Group recently reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.75, exceeding expectations, but its revenue decreased by 6.6% year-over-year, totaling $2.17 billion.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, with a yield of 4.9%, indicating a high payout ratio of 111.86%.

Westchester Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 194.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,314,144 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 868,278 shares during the quarter. Interpublic Group of Companies accounts for approximately 1.9% of Westchester Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Westchester Capital Management LLC owned about 0.36% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $35,692,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 1,475.5% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,328,121 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,072,000 after purchasing an additional 1,243,823 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 35,494 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $964,000 after purchasing an additional 2,025 shares during the last quarter. Allstate Corp increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 49.1% during the 1st quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 17,125 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $465,000 after purchasing an additional 5,637 shares during the last quarter. Norinchukin Bank The increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 22.3% during the 1st quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 33,137 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $900,000 after purchasing an additional 6,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Investment Consultants LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the 1st quarter worth about $204,000. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 0.6%

Interpublic Group of Companies stock traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $26.85. 2,410,150 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,566,417. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.27. 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 cap of $9.83 billion, a PE ratio of 22.75 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.20. The company 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%.Interpublic Group of Companies's revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. Research analysts expect that Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend 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 presently 111.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on IPG shares. UBS Group cut 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Interpublic Group of Companies from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Interpublic Group of Companies to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. Finally, Barclays cut Interpublic Group of Companies from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $34.00 to $27.50 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.39.

Interpublic Group of Companies Company 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.