State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 47,993 Shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lessened its holdings in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 28.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 123,633 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 47,993 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in International Paper were worth $5,335,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of International Paper by 35.1% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,135,702 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $824,716,000 after purchasing an additional 5,492,035 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in International Paper by 133.7% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,214,754 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $613,367,000 after acquiring an additional 8,132,332 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in International Paper by 61.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,030,839 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $471,065,000 after acquiring an additional 4,960,005 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in International Paper during the fourth quarter worth $94,913,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in International Paper by 0.5% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 775,079 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,445,000 after acquiring an additional 3,770 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on IP shares. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of International Paper in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $48.70 target price on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of International Paper from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of International Paper from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $38.00 to $57.00 in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.21.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of IP opened at $49.83 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.69 and a beta of 1.04. International Paper has a twelve month low of $31.76 and a twelve month high of $50.17. The company has a 50 day moving average of $46.48 and a 200-day moving average of $42.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $4.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.78 billion. International Paper had a return on equity of 7.28% and a net margin of 2.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that International Paper will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is 377.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Paper

In other news, SVP Clay R. Ellis sold 9,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction 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 owns 49,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,433,296.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.77, for a total value of $25,662.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 42,802 shares in the company, valued at $1,830,641.54. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Clay R. Ellis sold 9,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.83, for a total value of $439,470.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 49,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,433,296.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 18,840 shares of company stock valued at $898,268 in the last quarter. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.