Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for IP Earnings

International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research decreased their Q1 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of International Paper in a report released on Thursday, February 12th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the basic materials company will post earnings of $0.24 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.49. Zacks Research currently has a “Strong Sell” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for International Paper’s current full-year earnings is $2.77 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for International Paper’s Q2 2026 earnings at $0.49 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.52 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $1.83 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $0.81 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $0.84 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.85 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $0.74 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $3.23 EPS.

IP has been the subject of several other reports. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of International Paper from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on International Paper from $51.80 to $50.70 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on International Paper from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group lowered shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $51.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of International Paper in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.25.

International Paper Stock Down 0.2%

International Paper stock opened at $49.02 on Monday. International Paper has a 12 month low of $35.56 and a 12 month high of $57.55. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $25.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.31 and a beta of 1.11.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.36). The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.90 billion. International Paper had a negative net margin of 14.12% and a negative return on equity of 0.35%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 53.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.02) earnings per share.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Paper

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 51.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 48,990,719 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,272,966,000 after acquiring an additional 16,622,062 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in International Paper by 81.6% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 14,832,952 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $584,270,000 after acquiring an additional 6,663,986 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in International Paper in the 4th quarter valued at $250,093,000. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 3,768,772 shares during the period. Finally, M&G PLC increased its stake in International Paper by 165.9% in the second quarter. M&G PLC now owns 3,220,070 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $150,553,000 after purchasing an additional 2,009,123 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at International Paper

In related news, CEO Andrew K. Silvernail bought 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.98 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,999,000. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

International Paper Company Profile

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.