StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG)

Stock analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on IPG. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.50 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $33.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IPG opened at $26.69 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.06 and a 200 day moving average of $30.10. The stock has a market cap of $9.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.59 and a beta of 1.11. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 12 month low of $26.60 and a 12 month high of $35.17. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.70. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 7.44% and a return on equity of 27.76%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.70 earnings per share. Interpublic Group of Companies’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 49,532 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,388,000 after buying an additional 884 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 11,799 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 1,841 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 28,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $804,000 after purchasing an additional 2,787 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,277,771 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $72,041,000 after acquiring an additional 157,695 shares during the period. Finally, Copley Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $485,000. 98.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.