International Paper (NYSE:IP) Upgraded to “Outperform” at BNP Paribas Exane

BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) from an underperform rating to an outperform rating in a research report released on Monday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $44.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on International Paper from $61.00 to $57.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. BNP Paribas upgraded International Paper to an “outperform” rating and set a $44.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $57.80 price target on shares of International Paper and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of International Paper from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Paper currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.62.

International Paper Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE IP opened at $37.59 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $19.85 billion, a PE ratio of -375.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.77. International Paper has a 12-month low of $35.56 and a 12-month high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.43) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.96). The company had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. International Paper had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a positive return on equity of 2.63%. International Paper’s revenue for the quarter was up 56.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.33 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that International Paper will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. International Paper’s payout ratio is -70.88%.

Insider Activity at International Paper

In related news, SVP Joseph R. Saab sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.53, for a total transaction of $409,770.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 27,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,259,951.69. This trade represents a 24.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Paper

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IP. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of International Paper by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 18,737,896 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $877,496,000 after purchasing an additional 1,592,411 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its position in International Paper by 9.7% during the second quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 2,323,693 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $108,819,000 after buying an additional 205,888 shares during the period. Consolidated Planning Corp bought a new position in International Paper during the second quarter valued at about $317,000. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in International Paper during the second quarter worth about $604,000. Finally, Tableaux LLC bought a new stake in International Paper in the second quarter worth about $2,342,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

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.