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

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) in a report released on Thursday. The firm issued a hold rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on IPG. Bank of America lowered their price target on Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $34.00 to $29.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $36.00 to $33.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 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 research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.71.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

IPG stock opened at $28.63 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $29.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.32. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 12 month low of $26.88 and a 12 month high of $35.17. The company has a market capitalization of $10.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.50 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 7.44% and a return on equity of 27.76%. The firm had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $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, equities analysts anticipate that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Interpublic Group of Companies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 382.3% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 65,871 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,916,000 after purchasing an additional 52,214 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 44.8% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,379 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 2,904 shares during the period. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. boosted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 39.6% during the 2nd quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 124,498 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,622,000 after acquiring an additional 35,299 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the second quarter valued at about $92,000. Finally, Access Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 11.9% in the second quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. now owns 51,775 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,506,000 after purchasing an additional 5,516 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% 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.