Metis Global Partners LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Metis Global Partners LLC lessened its holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 43.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,664 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 9,712 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC's holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $355,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 15.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,844,859 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $943,993,000 after purchasing an additional 3,920,975 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 240.9% during the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 28,862 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $913,000 after acquiring an additional 20,395 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies during the third quarter valued at $1,589,000. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 956.5% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 104,734 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,313,000 after acquiring an additional 94,821 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 18.1% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 706,774 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $22,355,000 after acquiring an additional 108,267 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.43% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on IPG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Sunday. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $38.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $33.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,845,263.86. This represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE IPG traded up $0.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $28.20. The company had a trading volume of 10,359,489 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,692,010. The business's 50-day moving average is $27.74 and its 200-day moving average is $29.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $10.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.41 and a beta of 1.14. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.15 and a 52 week high of $35.17.

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 return on equity of 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. Equities analysts expect 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $155.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to purchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.