Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 13,723 Shares of International Paper Company (NYSE:IP)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in International Paper by 15.8%, now owning 73,275 shares valued at approximately $3.91 million.
• Despite a year-over-year revenue increase of 42.9%, International Paper missed earnings expectations for the quarter, reporting an EPS of $0.20 against a consensus estimate of $0.38.
• International Paper declared a quarterly dividend of $0.4625, representing an annual yield of 4.0%, with a high dividend payout ratio of 158.12%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of International Paper Company (NYSE:IP - Free Report) by 15.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 73,275 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 13,723 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in International Paper were worth $3,909,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in 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 valued at $2,561,651,000 after acquiring an additional 368,648 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased 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 valued at $1,609,462,000 after purchasing an additional 12,191,361 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased 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 valued at $1,429,449,000 after purchasing an additional 8,720,575 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of International Paper by 19.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 17,145,485 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $914,712,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782,042 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased 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 valued at $450,586,000 after purchasing an additional 24,816 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on IP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded International Paper from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $55.00 to $54.00 in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "underweight" rating and set a $43.00 price target (up previously from $40.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial set a $59.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised International Paper from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $55.03.

International Paper Stock Performance

Shares of IP traded down $0.39 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $45.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 293,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,663,031. International Paper Company has a one year low of $43.27 and a one year high of $60.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.11 billion, a PE ratio of -456.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.04. The stock's 50-day moving average is $49.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $50.67.

International Paper (NYSE:IP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.18). International Paper had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a positive return on equity of 2.63%. The company had revenue of $6.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 42.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that International Paper Company will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. International Paper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1,850.00%.

About International Paper

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.