Amundi Acquires 3,089,387 Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Amundi raised its holdings in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 133.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,402,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,089,387 shares during the quarter. Amundi’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $150,393,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 32,609 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,031,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 55,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,558,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Proactive Wealth Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Proactive Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 11,094 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $311,000 after acquiring an additional 607 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 11,507 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 630 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock opened at $28.22 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.44. 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 market capitalization of $10.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.42 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. Research analysts forecast that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

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

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on IPG shares. StockNews.com started coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.50.

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.