International Paper (NYSE:IP) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Truist Financial

Truist Financial restated their buy rating on shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $52.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on International Paper from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Bank of America upgraded International Paper from an underperform rating to a buy rating and upped their price objective for the company from $37.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded International Paper from a hold rating to a buy rating and upped their price objective for the company from $38.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Citigroup upgraded International Paper from a neutral rating to a buy rating and upped their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $46.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Paper presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $44.71.

International Paper Price Performance

NYSE IP opened at $43.15 on Thursday. International Paper has a twelve month low of $30.78 and a twelve month high of $47.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.99 billion, a PE ratio of 88.06 and a beta of 1.06. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.40.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.06). International Paper had a net margin of 0.93% and a return on equity of 7.45%. The firm had revenue of $4.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.53 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that International Paper will post 1.86 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 24th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th were given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.29%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 377.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Paper news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.11, for a total transaction of $27,066.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 43,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,957,864.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $121,392. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of IP. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of International Paper in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. StrategIQ Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper in the 4th quarter valued at $2,271,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 61.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,030,839 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $471,065,000 after purchasing an additional 4,960,005 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper in the 1st quarter valued at $1,312,000. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 1,437.6% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 293,639 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,615,000 after purchasing an additional 274,542 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

About International Paper

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.