Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 1,645 Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lessened its holdings in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 19,851 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,645 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $556,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 418.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 6,878 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $218,000 after acquiring an additional 5,552 shares during the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter worth approximately $294,000. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 13.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 39,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,262,000 after purchasing an additional 4,601 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 448.5% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 268,154 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,482,000 after buying an additional 219,263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB grew its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 2.1% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 613,367 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,401,000 after buying an additional 12,431 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of IPG opened at $25.98 on Tuesday. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $25.85 and a 1 year high of $33.05. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average price is $27.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.04. The firm has a market cap of $9.68 billion, a PE ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 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%. On average, 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 stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.08%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 72.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $3,845,263.86. This represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IPG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Argus cut shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price objective 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 Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.50.

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.