The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.33 (NYSE:IPG)

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 12th,RTT News reports. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of 0.33 per share by the business services provider on Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.87%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd.

Interpublic Group of Companies has increased its dividend payment by an average of 6.9% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 13 years. Interpublic Group of Companies has a payout ratio of 46.0% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Interpublic Group of Companies to earn $2.70 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.32 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 48.9%.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 0.4 %

IPG stock traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $27.08. 5,974,636 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,899,489. The stock's fifty day moving average is $28.30 and its 200-day moving average is $29.83. The company has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.77 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 52-week low of $26.30 and a 52-week high of $35.17.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 7.44% and a return on equity of 27.76%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $155.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on IPG shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Macquarie restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded 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 report on Monday, January 27th. 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. Finally, UBS Group raised Interpublic Group of Companies from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.