International Paper (NYSE:IP) Director Sells $27,756.00 in Stock

International Paper (NYSE:IP) Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.26, for a total transaction of $27,756.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 41,602 shares in the company, valued at $1,924,508.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

International Paper Stock Up 0.3 %

IP opened at $46.63 on Friday. International Paper has a twelve month low of $31.76 and a twelve month high of $47.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $45.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.70. The company has a market cap of $16.20 billion, a PE ratio of 95.16 and a beta of 1.05.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.14. International Paper had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 7.28%. The firm had revenue of $4.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be issued a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.97%. International Paper’s payout ratio is 377.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on IP. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of International Paper from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of International Paper from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of International Paper in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $48.70 target price on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $38.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.96.

Institutional Trading of International Paper

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in International Paper by 208.3% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 703 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in International Paper in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in International Paper by 1,094.7% in the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 681 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in International Paper in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in International Paper by 309.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 859 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% 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.