Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp Cuts Holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp decreased its position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 330,249 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 6,647 shares during the period. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp owned 0.09% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $9,253,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 21.7% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 315,865 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,846,000 after acquiring an additional 56,332 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 23.4% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 708,590 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $19,855,000 after purchasing an additional 134,173 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $3,278,000. Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the 4th quarter worth $375,000. Finally, Cinctive Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $2,802,000. Institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on IPG. UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Argus cut Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Down 3.6 %

Shares of IPG opened at $23.70 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $27.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.71. 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 Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $23.67 and a twelve month high of $33.05. The stock has a market cap of $8.83 billion, a PE ratio of 12.95 and a beta of 1.01.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its earnings results 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s payout ratio is 72.13%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling 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 shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,845,263.86. This trade represents 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. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies 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.