Saudi Central Bank Increases Holdings in International Paper Company $IP

Saudi Central Bank increased its position in International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) by 90.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,695 shares during the period. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in International Paper were worth $1,342,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of IP. Man Group plc purchased a new position in shares of International Paper in the second quarter valued at $24,640,000. DNB Asset Management AS grew its stake in International Paper by 144.2% in the 4th quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 258,920 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,199,000 after acquiring an additional 152,907 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in International Paper by 29.6% in the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 137,856 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,921,000 after acquiring an additional 31,518 shares during the last quarter. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in International Paper during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,615,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in International Paper during the second quarter worth about $77,604,000. 81.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP William Hamic sold 24,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total value of $1,009,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 106,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,406,422.40. This trade represents a 18.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,437,046.08. This trade represents a 9.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on IP shares. Zacks Research raised shares of International Paper from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Loop Capital set a $61.00 target price on International Paper in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $49.00 target price (up from $46.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, July 31st. Seaport Research Partners reissued a “buy” rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on International Paper from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $48.75.

International Paper Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of International Paper stock opened at $36.51 on Wednesday. International Paper Company has a fifty-two week low of $29.26 and a fifty-two week high of $50.25. The firm has a market cap of $19.34 billion, a PE ratio of -5.60, a P/E/G ratio of 4.63 and a beta of 0.93. The business’s fifty day moving average is $39.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.15. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.08. The business 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.20 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that International Paper Company will post 1.34 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.1%. International Paper’s payout ratio is -28.37%.

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.