Commerce Bank Cuts Position in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Commerce Bank reduced its position in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 17,932 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 369 shares during the period. Commerce Bank’s holdings in International Paper were worth $876,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of IP. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in International Paper by 133.7% during the 2nd 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 acquiring an additional 8,132,332 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of International Paper by 125.1% in the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,235,846 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $206,921,000 after purchasing an additional 2,354,341 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new position in shares of International Paper in the second quarter valued at approximately $119,012,000. Samlyn Capital LLC purchased a new stake in International Paper during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $88,966,000. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in International Paper during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $84,526,000. 81.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Argus raised International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $52.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $61.00 price target (up previously from $57.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, November 1st. BNP Paribas cut International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, 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 research note on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, International Paper presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.54.

International Paper Price Performance

International Paper stock opened at $59.32 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.61 billion, a PE ratio of 50.70 and a beta of 1.02. International Paper has a 52 week low of $32.51 and a 52 week high of $60.22. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.40. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.20. International Paper had a net margin of 2.25% and a return on equity of 6.49%. The business had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.64 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that International Paper will post 1.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. International Paper’s payout ratio is 158.12%.

Insider Activity at International Paper

In other news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.48, for a total transaction of $29,688.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 39,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,969,402.96. This represents a 1.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Clay R. Ellis sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.83, for a total transaction of $439,470.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 49,832 shares in the company, valued at $2,433,296.56. This represents a 15.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,440 shares of company stock valued at $944,540. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

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.