Birnam Oak Advisors LP Takes Position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Birnam Oak Advisors LP bought a new stake in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 256,238 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,180,000. Interpublic Group of Companies accounts for approximately 3.5% of Birnam Oak Advisors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 75.8% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $60,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 243,700.0% in the 3rd quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 2,437 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $107,000. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on IPG. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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 note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Monday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Barclays raised 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 note on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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 note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other Interpublic Group of Companies 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,845,263.86. This represents a 13.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Interpublic Group of Companies stock opened at $26.23 on Tuesday. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $25.93 and a 52 week high of $33.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $27.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a PE ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released 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 27.10% and a net margin of 6.45%. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.03%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.13%.

Interpublic Group of Companies declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock 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 repurchase up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.