The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Shares Sold by Weiss Asset Management LP

Weiss Asset Management LP reduced its stake in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG - Free Report) by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 768,240 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 58,198 shares during the quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP owned about 0.21% of Interpublic Group of Companies worth $24,299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of IPG. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 87.4% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 73,149 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,387,000 after purchasing an additional 34,122 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 26.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 27,838 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $908,000 after acquiring an additional 5,799 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the second quarter worth approximately $3,891,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 176.5% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 254,498 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $7,403,000 after acquiring an additional 162,468 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 36.8% during the 2nd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 311,761 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $9,069,000 after purchasing an additional 83,785 shares during the period. 98.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IPG traded down $0.38 during trading on Friday, hitting $29.10. 1,794,822 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,034,365. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $30.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The company has a market cap of $10.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.90 and a beta of 1.10. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.88 and a 1 year high of $35.17.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.70. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 7.44% and a return on equity of 27.76%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.70 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.54%. Interpublic Group of Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on IPG shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.50 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Macquarie reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "underweight" rating and set a $26.00 price target (down previously from $28.00) on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $30.57.

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.