Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC Acquires 1,498 Shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC increased its holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 12.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 13,915 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,498 shares during the period. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $390,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vestcor Inc boosted its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 2,031.5% in the 4th quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 125,907 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,528,000 after buying an additional 120,000 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $3,973,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 1,119,711 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,374,000 after purchasing an additional 165,008 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies by 100.5% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 13,793 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 6,915 shares during the period. Finally, Alpine Associates Management Inc. bought a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $9,857,000. 98.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on IPG. UBS Group raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $29.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $26.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Monday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One investment 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.50.

Interpublic Group of Companies Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:IPG opened at $26.47 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $27.63 and a 200 day moving average of $29.28. 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 $25.93 and a 52-week high of $33.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.86 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 1.14.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.99%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s payout ratio is 72.13%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CFO Ellen Tobi Johnson sold 21,427 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $574,672.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 143,373 shares in the company, valued at $3,845,263.86. This represents a 13.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

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.