Handelsbanken Fonder AB Raises Holdings in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP - Free Report) by 190.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 44,208 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 28,970 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in International Paper were worth $2,358,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of IP. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 0.8% in the 4th 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 buying an additional 368,648 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,195,085 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,217,119,000 after buying an additional 340,383 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 68.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 29,904,546 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,609,462,000 after buying an additional 12,191,361 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 48.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,559,812 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,429,449,000 after buying an additional 8,720,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,393,217 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $450,586,000 after buying an additional 24,816 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $40.00 price objective (down from $45.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, May 9th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of International Paper in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $64.00 price objective on shares of International Paper in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Wall Street Zen cut International Paper from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $59.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $54.54.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.85, for a total transaction of $336,375.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 31,525 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,413,896.25. This represents a 19.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

International Paper Price Performance

NYSE IP traded down $1.32 during trading on Friday, reaching $45.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,879,764 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,341,672. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.19 billion, a PE ratio of 29.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $47.17 and a 200 day moving average of $52.10. International Paper has a one year low of $41.50 and a one year high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP - Get Free Report) last announced its 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). The business had revenue of $5.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.38 billion. International Paper had a return on equity of 4.75% and a net margin of 2.99%. International Paper's revenue was up 27.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. Analysts expect that International Paper will post 2.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.04%. International Paper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 158.12%.

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.