International Paper (NYSE:IP) SVP Clay Ellis Sells 18,819 Shares

International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) SVP Clay Ellis sold 18,819 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.85, for a total transaction of $693,480.15. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of IP stock traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $38.99. 210,334 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,823,439. The company has a market capitalization of $20.59 billion, a PE ratio of -14.94, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. International Paper Company has a 12-month low of $35.56 and a 12-month high of $60.15. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.69.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.43) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.96). The business had revenue of $6.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.76 billion. International Paper had a negative net margin of 5.45% and a negative return on equity of 0.16%. International Paper’s revenue for the quarter was up 56.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.33 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that International Paper Company will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -70.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BNP Paribas Exane raised International Paper from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $44.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of International Paper from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of International Paper from $55.00 to $46.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Bank of America raised International Paper from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $55.00 to $57.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on International Paper from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.44.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors increased its position in International Paper by 51.4% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 48,990,719 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,272,966,000 after buying an additional 16,622,062 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in International Paper in the 2nd quarter worth about $281,735,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in International Paper by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 51,798,017 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,763,426,000 after acquiring an additional 4,201,422 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 7.5% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 54,330,790 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,520,945,000 after acquiring an additional 3,768,772 shares during the period. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of International Paper by 230.0% during the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,965,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $211,543,000 after purchasing an additional 2,763,634 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.