Allstate Corp Takes $322,000 Position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 11,488 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $322,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $943,993,000 after buying an additional 3,920,975 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 4.1% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,449,534 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $298,107,000 after acquiring an additional 81,265 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 25,637.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 7,403,256 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $207,439,000 after purchasing an additional 7,374,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 133.6% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 5,402,201 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $150,393,000 after purchasing an additional 3,089,387 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.43% of the company's stock.

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Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock traded down $0.42 during trading on Monday, hitting $23.28. 8,811,980 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,019,588. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.66. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.71 and a 52-week high of $33.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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, 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 approved a share buyback plan 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 purchase up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.67%. Interpublic Group of Companies's payout ratio is 72.13%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares in the company, 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 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 research report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded 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 note on Friday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target 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.