Palouse Capital Management Inc. Raises Holdings in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Palouse Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 57,089 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,293 shares during the quarter. International Paper comprises about 1.5% of Palouse Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Palouse Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in International Paper were worth $2,064,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC bought a new position in International Paper in the third quarter worth about $144,509,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of International Paper during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $83,530,000. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in shares of International Paper by 4.0% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 36,929,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,331,687,000 after buying an additional 1,436,757 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of International Paper by 208.0% during the third quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,610,933 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $57,129,000 after buying an additional 1,087,933 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of International Paper by 13.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,811,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $312,553,000 after buying an additional 1,011,315 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Paper Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE IP traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $35.38. The stock had a trading volume of 14,618,550 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,785,190. The firm has a market cap of $12.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.14 and a beta of 0.99. International Paper has a twelve month low of $29.00 and a twelve month high of $41.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.67. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $36.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.83.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.07. International Paper had a net margin of 1.52% and a return on equity of 8.87%. The company had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.88 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Paper

In other International Paper news, SVP James P. Jr. Royalty sold 5,800 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.75, for a total transaction of $201,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 69,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,414,708. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 8,800 shares of company stock worth $310,438 over the last three months. 0.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on IP. Citigroup upgraded shares of International Paper from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $36.00 to $46.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Argus cut shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. StockNews.com cut shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of International Paper in a research report on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.13.

International Paper Company Profile

International Paper Company produces and sells renewable fiber-based packaging and pulp products in North America, Latin America, Europe, and North Africa. It operates through two segments, Industrial Packaging and Global Cellulose Fibers. The company offers linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium and saturating kraft; and pulp for a range of applications, such as diapers, towel and tissue products, feminine care, incontinence, and other personal care products, as well as specialty pulps for use in textiles, construction materials, paints, coatings, and others.