International Paper (NYSE:IP) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Sunday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $51.00 to $61.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of International Paper from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of International Paper from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of International Paper from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.75.

International Paper Stock Up 1.1%

NYSE IP opened at $41.81 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.94. International Paper has a one year low of $29.26 and a one year high of $50.25. The firm has a market cap of $22.14 billion, a PE ratio of -6.41 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.19 billion. International Paper had a negative return on equity of 1.09% and a negative net margin of 14.20%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.20 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that International Paper will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is -28.37%.

Insider Activity

In other International Paper news, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.96, for a total transaction of $146,860.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 34,248 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,437,046.08. This represents a 9.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP William Thomas Hamic sold 24,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total transaction of $1,009,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 106,952 shares in the company, valued at $4,406,422.40. This trade represents a 18.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Paper

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IP. DNB Asset Management AS boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 144.2% in the fourth quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 258,920 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,199,000 after buying an additional 152,907 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in shares of International Paper by 29.6% during the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 137,856 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,921,000 after acquiring an additional 31,518 shares in the last quarter. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Paper during the first quarter worth $2,615,000. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of International Paper by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 374,851 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,765,000 after acquiring an additional 42,541 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in International Paper in the 4th quarter valued at $250,093,000. 81.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About International Paper

International Paper is a global producer of renewable fiber-based products, focused primarily on pulp, paper, and packaging. The company manufactures containerboard and corrugated packaging used for shipping and retail display, as well as a range of specialty papers and pulp products that serve industrial, consumer goods, and e-commerce customers. Its product portfolio is oriented toward large-scale packaging solutions, tissue and paper grades, and raw pulp for a variety of manufacturing uses.

Founded in 1898, International Paper is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, and is one of the largest and longest-established companies in the forest products sector.