SG Americas Securities LLC Increases Holdings in The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG)

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (NYSE:IPG) by 462.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 114,134 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 93,829 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Interpublic Group of Companies were worth $3,100,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in Interpublic Group of Companies by 139.5% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 13,210,446 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $370,157,000 after buying an additional 7,693,636 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 133.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 5,402,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $150,393,000 after acquiring an additional 3,089,387 shares in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 12,548.6% in the fourth quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 2,425,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $67,955,000 after acquiring an additional 2,406,073 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Interpublic Group of Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $51,794,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Interpublic Group of Companies by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 12,975,872 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $363,584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,492,019 shares in the last quarter. 98.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on IPG. Wall Street Zen began coverage on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Argus lowered shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.44.

Interpublic Group of Companies Trading Down 2.8%

NYSE IPG opened at $22.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.49 billion, a PE ratio of 12.55 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $24.35 and a 200 day moving average of $26.58. The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $22.51 and a 1 year high of $33.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. Interpublic Group of Companies had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 27.10%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Interpublic Group of Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.75%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 100.76%.

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.