Ascent Group LLC Has $1.87 Million Stake in International Paper Company $IP

Ascent Group LLC reduced its holdings in International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) by 27.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 40,336 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 15,292 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in International Paper were worth $1,872,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of IP. Diversified Trust Co boosted its position in shares of International Paper by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 40,966 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,901,000 after purchasing an additional 4,396 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its stake in International Paper by 5.9% in the third quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,751 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 432 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its holdings in International Paper by 16.4% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 11,152 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $517,000 after buying an additional 1,568 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its position in shares of International Paper by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 8,482 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 809 shares during the period. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of International Paper by 27.9% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Paper

In related news, SVP Clay R. Ellis sold 18,819 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.85, for a total value of $693,480.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $57.80 price objective on shares of International Paper and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of International Paper from $51.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of International Paper from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on International Paper from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded International Paper from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.23.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IP opened at $39.44 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $39.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.05. International Paper Company has a 1-year low of $35.56 and a 1-year high of $60.15. The firm has a market cap of $20.83 billion, a PE ratio of -15.11, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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). International Paper had a negative return on equity of 0.16% and a negative net margin of 5.45%.The business had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.33 earnings per share. International Paper’s revenue was up 56.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that International Paper Company will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is -70.88%.

International Paper Company Profile

International Paper is a global producer of renewable fiber-based products, focused primarily on pulp, paper, and packaging. The company manufactures containerboard and corrugated packaging used for shipping and retail display, as well as a range of specialty papers and pulp products that serve industrial, consumer goods, and e-commerce customers. Its product portfolio is oriented toward large-scale packaging solutions, tissue and paper grades, and raw pulp for a variety of manufacturing uses.

Founded in 1898, International Paper is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, and is one of the largest and longest-established companies in the forest products sector.