International Paper’s (IP) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Argus

International Paper (NYSE:IP)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by equities research analysts at Argus in a report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $45.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock. Argus’ target price indicates a potential upside of 28.62% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Loop Capital set a $61.00 price objective on shares of International Paper in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of International Paper from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of International Paper from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of International Paper from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.82.

International Paper Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of IP traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $34.99. 1,261,967 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,300,165. The firm has a market cap of $18.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.37, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.46. International Paper has a 12-month low of $29.26 and a 12-month high of $50.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.19 billion. International Paper had a negative net margin of 14.20% and a negative return on equity of 1.09%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Paper news, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.96, for a total transaction of $146,860.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 34,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,437,046.08. This represents a 9.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP William Hamic sold 24,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total transaction of $1,009,400.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Paper

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IP. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 29.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 63,413,335 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,498,013,000 after acquiring an additional 14,422,616 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 54,535,444 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,148,154,000 after acquiring an additional 204,654 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of International Paper during the second quarter valued at $1,940,896,000. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 7.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,999,909 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,257,297,000 after acquiring an additional 2,189,597 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of International Paper during the second quarter valued at $689,498,000. 81.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Paper Company Profile

International Paper Company (NYSE: IP) is a global producer of sustainable packaging and paper-based products. The company manufactures containerboard, corrugated packaging, and other fiber-based packaging solutions used to transport and protect goods across a range of industries. Its offerings also include absorbent pulp and cellulose fibers used in products such as diapers, hygiene items, and other consumer and industrial applications.

Founded in 1898, International Paper has grown through the development and operation of paper mills, packaging facilities, and related manufacturing assets.