Russell Investments Group Ltd. Acquires 56,332 Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 21.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 315,865 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 56,332 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $8,846,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IPG. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,938,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $362,538,000 after acquiring an additional 511,607 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,531,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $266,614,000 after purchasing an additional 81,996 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 25,637.0% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 7,403,256 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $207,439,000 after buying an additional 7,374,491 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 133.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 5,402,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $150,393,000 after buying an additional 3,089,387 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,271,759 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $119,695,000 after acquiring an additional 310,621 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:IPG opened at $24.57 on Friday. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.51 and a twelve month high of $33.05. 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 stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $26.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.16 billion, a PE ratio of 13.43 and a beta of 1.01.

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

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.37%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.13%.

Insider Activity

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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at $3,845,263.86. This trade represents a 13.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on IPG shares. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. 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 report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. 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, Interpublic Group of Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.