International Paper (NYSE:IP) Director Kathryn D. Sullivan Sells 600 Shares of Stock

International Paper (NYSE:IP) Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $35,034.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,145 shares in the company, valued at $2,168,896.55. The trade was a 1.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

International Paper Stock Performance

IP stock opened at $58.46 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $52.59 and a 200-day moving average of $48.21. The firm has a market cap of $20.31 billion, a PE ratio of 49.96 and a beta of 1.02. International Paper has a 12-month low of $32.70 and a 12-month high of $60.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. International Paper had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 2.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.22 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is 158.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of International Paper by 88.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,839,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $871,447,000 after purchasing an additional 8,370,273 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of International Paper by 133.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,214,754 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $613,367,000 after buying an additional 8,132,332 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new position in shares of International Paper during the 2nd quarter valued at $119,012,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 511.1% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,970,432 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $145,106,000 after acquiring an additional 2,484,386 shares during the period. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in International Paper by 125.1% in the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,235,846 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $206,921,000 after acquiring an additional 2,354,341 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on IP. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of International Paper from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $61.00 price target (up previously from $57.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Argus raised International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $52.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, International Paper currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.54.

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.