The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) Shares Acquired by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,072,494 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,713 shares during the quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $30,051,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its holdings 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Interpublic Group of Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 52.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the third quarter worth $60,000. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:IPG opened at $27.84 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $10.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.13 and a beta of 1.11. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.30 and a 1-year high of $35.17. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $28.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.05.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.70. The business had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 27.76% and a net margin of 7.44%. The company’s revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.70 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.74%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on IPG. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.50 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. BNP Paribas raised Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Monday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.50.

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.