Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) Upgraded at UBS Group

UBS Group upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Thursday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $27.00 price objective on the business services provider's stock, down from their previous price objective of $29.00.

IPG has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Thursday. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. BNP Paribas raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $38.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Macquarie reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $31.00 target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Performance

IPG stock traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $27.08. The company had a trading volume of 5,974,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,899,489. The firm has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a PE ratio of 12.77 and a beta of 1.11. 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 has a 12 month low of $26.30 and a 12 month high of $35.17. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $28.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.82.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last announced 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 return on equity of 27.76% and a net margin of 7.44%. On average, analysts forecast that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan 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 buy up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.87%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Interpublic Group of Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IPG. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 70.3% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 253,172 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $8,008,000 after acquiring an additional 104,514 shares during the period. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of 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 valued at $19,401,000 after buying an additional 12,431 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 0.4% during the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 122,533 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,876,000 after buying an additional 457 shares during the period. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 6.2% during the third quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC now owns 41,555 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,314,000 after buying an additional 2,412 shares during the period. Finally, ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 7.5% during the third quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,070,781 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,869,000 after buying an additional 74,843 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.43% of the company's stock.

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.