6,349,147 Shares in International Paper Company $IP Acquired by Norges Bank

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 6,349,147 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $250,093,000. Norges Bank owned 1.20% of International Paper at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of IP. Capital International Investors increased its holdings 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 worth $2,272,966,000 after acquiring an additional 16,622,062 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in International Paper by 7.5% during the 3rd 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. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in International Paper by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,121,170 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $423,222,000 after acquiring an additional 960,240 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in International Paper by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,039,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $233,824,000 after acquiring an additional 809,727 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in International Paper by 94.8% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,590,689 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $62,657,000 after acquiring an additional 774,301 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IP opened at $33.81 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $33.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.32 and a beta of 0.96. International Paper Company has a one year low of $29.26 and a one year high of $56.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $5.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 billion. International Paper had a negative return on equity of 0.49% and a negative net margin of 13.42%.International Paper’s quarterly revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.17 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that International Paper Company will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.5%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -29.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Paper

In other International Paper news, Director Scott Tozier bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were bought at an average price of $31.30 per share, for a total transaction of $313,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,025 shares in the company, valued at $313,782.50. This trade represents a 40,000.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Anders Gustafsson purchased 13,217 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $37.83 per share, with a total value of $499,999.11. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 26,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $987,060.36. The trade was a 102.66% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 36,092 shares of company stock worth $1,313,064. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on IP shares. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of International Paper from $48.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of International Paper from $46.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of International Paper from $44.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of International Paper from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $38.00 to $39.00 in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of International Paper from $51.80 to $50.70 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 9th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Paper presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.73.

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.