International Paper (NYSE:IP) Position Cut by Wright Investors Service Inc.

Wright Investors Service Inc. trimmed its stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 14.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 43,002 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 7,383 shares during the quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in International Paper were worth $1,555,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in International Paper by 4.0% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 36,929,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,331,687,000 after buying an additional 1,436,757 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of International Paper by 0.9% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,364,091 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,124,403,000 after purchasing an additional 218,754 shares during the period. Greenhaven Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of International Paper by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 9,835,395 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $355,550,000 after purchasing an additional 25,640 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of International Paper by 13.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,811,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $312,553,000 after purchasing an additional 1,011,315 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in shares of International Paper by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,839,269 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $202,214,000 after purchasing an additional 413,320 shares during the period. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on IP shares. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a report on Wednesday. Argus lowered International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Citigroup raised International Paper from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $36.00 to $46.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on International Paper from $39.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Bank of America raised International Paper from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $37.00 to $42.00 in a report on Monday, March 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.13.

International Paper Stock Up 0.8 %

NYSE IP traded up $0.27 during trading on Thursday, reaching $35.33. 1,874,416 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,608,250. International Paper has a fifty-two week low of $29.00 and a fifty-two week high of $41.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.27 billion, a PE ratio of 42.76 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.84.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. International Paper had a return on equity of 8.87% and a net margin of 1.52%. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.67 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.87 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that International Paper will post 1.88 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP James P. Jr. Royalty sold 5,800 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.75, for a total transaction of $201,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 69,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,414,708. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 8,800 shares of company stock worth $310,438. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.