American Century Companies Inc. Sells 1,087,536 Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

American Century Companies Inc. cut its stake in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 19.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,607,529 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,087,536 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 1.24% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $129,103,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 243,700.0% in the 3rd quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 2,437 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $107,000. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IPG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com began coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Tuesday. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. One investment 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $33.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at $3,845,263.86. This trade represents a 13.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 1.6 %

IPG stock traded up $0.40 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $26.33. The company had a trading volume of 4,455,106 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,670,182. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.04. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $25.85 and a 12 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 has a market cap of $9.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last released its 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 return on equity of 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. As a group, analysts predict that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies 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.