Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 11,748 The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position 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 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 11,748 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $329,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in IPG. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 3,341 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 573 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $107,000. Finally, Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $141,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.43% of the company's stock.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE IPG opened at $23.90 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $8.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.06 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.51 and a 52-week high of $33.05. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $25.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.05.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.04). Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.52%. The ex-dividend date 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 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 reacquire up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on IPG shares. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Argus downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $38.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $33.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the business'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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at $3,845,263.86. The trade was a 13.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

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.

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