International Paper (NYSE:IP) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on IP. UBS Group began coverage on International Paper in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup began coverage on International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $40.00 target price (down from $45.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on International Paper in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $59.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, International Paper has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.54.

International Paper Stock Performance

Shares of IP stock opened at $47.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.33. International Paper has a fifty-two week low of $42.26 and a fifty-two week high of $60.36. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $47.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.28. The company has a market capitalization of $25.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.56, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.04.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.12). International Paper had a net margin of 1.99% and a return on equity of 4.05%. The company had revenue of $5.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.17 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that International Paper will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.90%. International Paper’s payout ratio is 158.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.85, for a total value of $336,375.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 31,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,413,896.25. This represents a 19.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Paper

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IP. SPC Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 14,100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $759,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 12,358 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $665,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 67.0% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 536 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 5,437 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 2.5% in the first quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 9,244 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $493,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Paper Company Profile

International Paper Company produces and sells renewable fiber-based packaging and pulp products in North America, Latin America, Europe, and North Africa. It operates through two segments, Industrial Packaging and Global Cellulose Fibers. The company offers linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium and saturating kraft; and pulp for a range of applications, such as diapers, towel and tissue products, feminine care, incontinence, and other personal care products, as well as specialty pulps for use in textiles, construction materials, paints, coatings, and others.