US Bancorp DE Reduces Position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

US Bancorp DE reduced its stake in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 17.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,868 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 7,269 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $977,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,325,000. Advisor OS LLC acquired a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies during the fourth quarter worth $430,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,271,759 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $119,695,000 after purchasing an additional 310,621 shares during the period. Brown Financial Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Brown Financial Advisors now owns 16,256 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $455,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RWC Asset Management LLP grew its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 11,678 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,892 shares during the period. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:IPG opened at $28.20 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $10.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.41 and a beta of 1.14. 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’s 50 day moving average is $27.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.47. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.15 and a fifty-two week high of $35.17.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.04). Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. Analysts expect that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.68%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

Insider Transactions at Interpublic Group of Companies

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

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.