Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Boosts Stake in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 12.4% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 31,648 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,499 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $1,001,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of IPG. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 13.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,842,846 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $199,063,000 after acquiring an additional 828,150 shares during the period. Ariel Investments LLC raised its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 3.5% during the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 5,710,448 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $166,117,000 after purchasing an additional 193,898 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 4.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,604,984 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $163,049,000 after acquiring an additional 255,250 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 19.8% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,436,803 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $158,157,000 after acquiring an additional 899,332 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 2.0% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,120,076 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $61,672,000 after acquiring an additional 41,939 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Down 7.2 %

Shares of IPG stock opened at $27.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.78 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.01 and a 52-week high of $35.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $30.70 and its 200-day moving average is $30.62.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70. The firm 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 company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.70 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.82 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.87%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on IPG. Morgan Stanley cut Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $34.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Interpublic Group of Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $26.00 price objective (down from $28.00) on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America lowered their price target on 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. Finally, BNP Paribas downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.57.

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.