Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.01 EPS

Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The business services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.01, RTT News reports. Interpublic Group of Companies had a return on equity of 29.80% and a net margin of 9.97%. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Interpublic Group of Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IPG traded up $0.19 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $31.35. The company had a trading volume of 627,651 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,040,958. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.35. Interpublic Group of Companies has a twelve month low of $27.20 and a twelve month high of $40.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.13.

Interpublic Group of Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. 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 4.21%. Interpublic Group of Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 46.98%.

Insider Activity at Interpublic Group of Companies

In other Interpublic Group of Companies news, CAO Christopher F. Carroll sold 18,382 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 42,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,364,958. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CAO Christopher F. Carroll sold 18,382 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total value of $591,900.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 42,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,364,958. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Philippe Krakowsky sold 150,403 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.20, for a total transaction of $4,842,976.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 415,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,387,987.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 249,646 shares of company stock valued at $8,038,601. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Interpublic Group of Companies from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group started 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 target price on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Interpublic Group of Companies from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Interpublic Group of Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.13.

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.