Vontobel Holding Ltd. Trims Holdings in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. cut its stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,127 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 842 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in International Paper were worth $545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in International Paper by 5.7% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 3,282 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC lifted its stake in International Paper by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 3,814 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in International Paper by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,601 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its stake in International Paper by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 15,244 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $820,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC lifted its stake in International Paper by 1.9% during the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 12,270 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $599,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on IP. Bank of America began coverage on International Paper in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 target price (down previously from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BNP Paribas lowered International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.88.

International Paper Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE IP opened at $57.27 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.48, a PEG ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $55.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.49. International Paper has a 52-week low of $33.16 and a 52-week high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.05). International Paper had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 4.75%. Sell-side analysts expect that International Paper will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. International Paper’s payout ratio is presently 117.84%.

Insider Transactions at International Paper

In related news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $35,034.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,168,896.55. This represents a 1.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 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.