The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Receives Consensus Rating of “Reduce” from Analysts

Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the eight analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $30.57.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on IPG. Morgan Stanley downgraded Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $34.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group downgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $34.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.50 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

NYSE:IPG opened at $27.09 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.78 and a beta of 1.10. Interpublic Group of Companies has a 12-month low of $27.01 and a 12-month high of $35.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company’s 50-day moving average is $30.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.59.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.70. The business had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.70 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Interpublic Group of Companies will post 2.82 EPS for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Trading of Interpublic Group of Companies

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 73.8% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 883 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 652.2% in the second quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 1,038 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.43% of the company’s stock.

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.