The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Shares Purchased by V Square Quantitative Management LLC

V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 16.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,702 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,538 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $916,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IPG. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies during the third quarter worth $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the third quarter worth $32,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter valued at $60,000. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 250.0% in the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 2,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 31.8% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,356 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IPG has been the subject of several recent research reports. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Macquarie reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IPG opened at $27.08 on Friday. 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 Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.30 and a fifty-two week high of $35.17. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.88. The company has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a PE ratio of 12.77 and a beta of 1.11.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.8 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.87%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.26%.

Interpublic Group of Companies announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $155.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Interpublic Group of Companies 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.