The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Shares Bought by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 17.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,119,711 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 165,008 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $31,374,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of IPG. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in 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 last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter worth about $32,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter worth about $60,000. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 243,700.0% in the third quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 2,437 shares during the period. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Interpublic Group of Companies

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on IPG shares. Barclays upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Argus cut shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

NYSE IPG opened at $28.22 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.42 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.44. 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 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.04). Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. Equities research analysts predict that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

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 given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Interpublic Group of Companies’s payout ratio is presently 72.13%.

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.