Zacks: Brokerages Anticipate International Paper (NYSE:IP) Will Post Quarterly Sales of $5.01 Billion

Wall Street analysts expect that International Paper (NYSE:IP – Get Rating) will post sales of $5.01 billion for the current quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Five analysts have made estimates for International Paper’s earnings, with estimates ranging from $4.87 billion to $5.13 billion. International Paper posted sales of $5.36 billion in the same quarter last year, which suggests a negative year-over-year growth rate of 6.5%. The business is expected to announce its next earnings results before the market opens on Monday, January 1st.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that International Paper will report full year sales of $20.69 billion for the current financial year, with estimates ranging from $20.15 billion to $21.28 billion. For the next financial year, analysts forecast that the company will post sales of $20.97 billion, with estimates ranging from $20.27 billion to $21.93 billion. Zacks’ sales averages are an average based on a survey of research firms that follow International Paper.

International Paper (NYSE:IP – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.09). International Paper had a net margin of 8.04% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. International Paper’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several brokerages have issued reports on IP. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of International Paper from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $49.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 28th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of International Paper from $54.00 to $53.00 in a research note on Friday, April 8th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 28th. Bank of America cut shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 20th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price target on shares of International Paper from $44.00 to $41.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $57.64.

NYSE:IP traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $47.43. 1,644,404 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,764,327. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $45.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. International Paper has a fifty-two week low of $40.45 and a fifty-two week high of $65.27. The firm has a market cap of $17.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.66 and a beta of 0.98.

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of IP. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC acquired a new position in International Paper during the 4th quarter worth $267,490,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in International Paper by 109.9% during the 3rd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 8,957,262 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $500,891,000 after acquiring an additional 4,689,181 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in International Paper by 866.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,153,724 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $240,937,000 after acquiring an additional 4,620,724 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in International Paper during the 4th quarter worth $188,782,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in International Paper during the 4th quarter worth $97,949,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.57% of the company’s stock.

About International Paper (Get Rating)

International Paper Company operates as a packaging company primarily in United States, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Pacific Rim, Asia, and rest of the Americas. It operates through two segments: Industrial Packaging and Global Cellulose Fibers. The Industrial Packaging segment manufactures containerboards, including linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium, and saturating kraft.

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