The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 33,210,000 shares, a growth of 43.6% from the February 13th total of 23,130,000 shares. Approximately 9.0% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 6,390,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.2 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. This trade represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter worth $60,000. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 2,437 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Argus lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. 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. BNP Paribas raised 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, January 10th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Monday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of IPG stock traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $26.23. 7,451,620 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,474,937. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 12 month low of $25.93 and a 12 month high of $33.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $27.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a PE ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) 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, research analysts forecast that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.13%.

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