Advisors Asset Management Inc. Purchases 60,463 Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 14.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 486,812 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 60,463 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. owned 0.13% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $13,640,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,844,859 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $943,993,000 after purchasing an additional 3,920,975 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 42,496 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 240.9% in the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 28,862 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $913,000 after purchasing an additional 20,395 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,589,000. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 956.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 104,734 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,313,000 after purchasing an additional 94,821 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Interpublic Group of Companies

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock in a transaction 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 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

NYSE:IPG opened at $26.23 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $9.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.24. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.93 and a 1-year high of $33.29.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its quarterly earnings results 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%. Equities 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 initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

IPG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Monday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One equities 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies currently has an average 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.