International Paper Company $IP Shares Sold by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System lessened its stake in International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 585,890 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 14,744 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in International Paper were worth $20,916,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in IP. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Paper by 102.0% during the 1st quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 28,266 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,009,000 after purchasing an additional 14,276 shares in the last quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in International Paper by 9.0% during the first quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $231,000 after buying an additional 535 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in International Paper by 9.4% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 778,301 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,785,000 after buying an additional 66,666 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its holdings in International Paper by 102.4% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 751,025 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,812,000 after buying an additional 379,913 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA raised its position in shares of International Paper by 13.2% in the first quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA now owns 120,056 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,286,000 after acquiring an additional 14,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

International Paper Stock Down 4.9%

IP stock opened at $41.03 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.29 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. International Paper Company has a 52 week low of $29.26 and a 52 week high of $52.28.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.19 billion. International Paper had a negative net margin of 14.20% and a negative return on equity of 1.09%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.20 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that International Paper Company will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is presently -29.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on IP. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on International Paper from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $49.00 price target (up from $46.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday. Loop Capital set a $61.00 price objective on International Paper in a report on Tuesday. Bank of America cut International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Zacks Research raised International Paper from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, International Paper presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.75.

Key Headlines Impacting International Paper

Here are the key news stories impacting International Paper this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its price target to $48 and assigned a Buy rating, implying approximately 17% potential upside based on the referenced price. The call suggests confidence in containerboard pricing and International Paper’s longer-term recovery prospects. Benzinga analyst price target report
• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter adjusted EPS was $0.04, beating the consensus estimate of a $0.04 loss. Recent insider activity also showed five open-market purchases and no sales over the past six months, including purchases by the CEO and other executives. These factors may provide some support for investor confidence. International Paper second-quarter results
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded International Paper’s stock rating, while other recent analyst targets have been mixed. Institutional positioning was also divided, with some large investors adding shares and others making substantial reductions. JPMorgan International Paper rating update
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue totaled $6.00 billion, below roughly $6.2 billion in expectations and down 11.3% year over year. The company reported a $12 million loss from continuing operations, negative free cash flow of $7 million, and reduced profitability expectations. Management projected full-year adjusted EBITDA of $3.20 billion to $3.40 billion and warned that a temporary Pine Hill, Alabama, mill closure will reduce third-quarter EBITDA by about $85 million. Higher maintenance, input and freight costs are adding further pressure. Zacks International Paper earnings analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts cut estimates for second- and third-quarter EPS, reinforcing concerns that maintenance outages, macroeconomic headwinds and weaker profitability could outweigh the quarterly earnings beat. International Paper EPS forecast revision

About International Paper

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.