Machina Capital S.A.S. Trims Stake in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Machina Capital S.A.S. reduced its holdings in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 36.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,901 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 6,320 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in IPG. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $236,000. River Global Investors LLP bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,417,000. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 93,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,088,000 after purchasing an additional 7,258 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $407,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of Interpublic Group of Companies by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 94,366 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,080,000 after purchasing an additional 11,224 shares during the period. 98.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CAO Christopher F. Carroll sold 18,382 shares of Interpublic Group of Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total value of $591,900.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 42,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,364,958. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Andrew Bonzani sold 40,468 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total value of $1,303,069.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 70,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,878.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Christopher F. Carroll sold 18,382 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total transaction of $591,900.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 42,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,364,958. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 249,646 shares of company stock valued at $8,038,601 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on IPG. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $36.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.13.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IPG traded up $0.12 on Tuesday, reaching $30.96. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,569,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,996,161. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.20 and a 52-week high of $40.95. The company has a market cap of $11.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.98, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.01. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 29.70%. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.38 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.33 dividend. This is a boost from Interpublic Group of Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.98%.

About Interpublic Group of Companies

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.