Analysts Set International Paper (NYSE:IP) Price Target at $51.54

International Paper (NYSE:IP) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the ten analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $51.54.

IP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Argus raised International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $52.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of International Paper from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $61.00 price target (up from $57.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas cut International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, November 13th.

International Paper Stock Performance

Shares of IP stock opened at $58.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.31 billion, a PE ratio of 49.96 and a beta of 1.02. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $52.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.21. International Paper has a one year low of $32.70 and a one year high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.20. International Paper had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 2.25%. The firm had revenue of $4.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.64 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that International Paper will post 1.22 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

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 given a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.16%. International Paper’s payout ratio is 158.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $35,034.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 37,145 shares in the company, valued at $2,168,896.55. The trade was a 1.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Holly G. Goughnour sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.22, for a total transaction of $236,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 16,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $792,729.36. This trade represents a 22.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,040 shares of company stock worth $540,104 in the last 90 days. 0.55% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Paper

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IP. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of International Paper during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in International Paper in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Paper during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Paper during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of International Paper during the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. 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.