Diversified Trust Co Invests $1.95 Million in International Paper Company (NYSE:IP)

Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in International Paper Company (NYSE:IP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 36,476 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,946,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in International Paper by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 47,596,595 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,561,651,000 after purchasing an additional 368,648 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in International Paper by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,195,085 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,217,119,000 after purchasing an additional 340,383 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in International Paper by 68.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 29,904,546 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,609,462,000 after purchasing an additional 12,191,361 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in International Paper by 48.9% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,559,812 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,429,449,000 after purchasing an additional 8,720,575 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in International Paper by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,393,217 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $450,586,000 after purchasing an additional 24,816 shares during the period. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on IP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of International Paper in a report on Thursday, March 20th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $59.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of International Paper from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $64.00 price objective on shares of International Paper in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of International Paper in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of International Paper in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $54.54.

International Paper Stock Up 2.0%

IP opened at $47.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company's 50-day moving average is $47.05 and its 200 day moving average is $51.33. International Paper Company has a fifty-two week low of $42.26 and a fifty-two week high of $60.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.56, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.04.

International Paper (NYSE:IP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.12). International Paper had a net margin of 1.99% and a return on equity of 4.05%. The firm had revenue of $5.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 27.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that International Paper Company will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. International Paper's payout ratio is currently 158.12%.

Insider Activity at International Paper

In other International Paper news, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 7,500 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.85, for a total value of $336,375.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 31,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,413,896.25. The trade was a 19.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

International Paper 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.

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