The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Position Lessened by AMF Tjanstepension AB

AMF Tjanstepension AB decreased its stake in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 41.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 148,658 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 104,514 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $4,165,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IPG. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter worth $60,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 243,700.0% in the 3rd quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 2,437 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AM Squared Ltd raised its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 63.2% in the 3rd quarter. AM Squared Ltd now owns 3,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $98,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at $3,845,263.86. The trade was a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IPG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Barclays upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of IPG stock opened at $28.20 on Friday. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.15 and a 1-year 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. The company has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.41 and a beta of 1.14. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $29.48.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.04). Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $155.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.68%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.13%.

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.