22,559 Shares in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Purchased by Moore Capital Management LP

Moore Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 22,559 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $632,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,651,753 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $52,243,000 after acquiring an additional 13,546 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 49,532 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 884 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 80,768 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,263,000 after purchasing an additional 4,257 shares in the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 55,595 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 127.7% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 15,723 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 8,819 shares during the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on IPG shares. StockNews.com started coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Monday, May 12th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Argus lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $33.44.

Insider Buying and Selling at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. This trade represents a 13.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

IPG traded up $0.30 during trading on Friday, hitting $25.48. The stock had a trading volume of 2,514,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,178,719. The firm has a market cap of $9.42 billion, a PE ratio of 13.92 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.35. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.51 and a 12 month high of $33.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. 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. Interpublic Group of Companies's revenue was down 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $155.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board 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.