Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Lowers Position in International Paper Company $IP

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services trimmed its stake in International Paper by 6.7% in Q4, selling 258,212 shares and now owning 3,576,579 shares (about 0.68%) valued at roughly $140.9 million.
• Company insiders have been buying: Director Anders Gustafsson bought 13,217 shares at $37.83 and CEO Andrew Silvernail bought 50,000 shares at $39.98, with insiders acquiring a total of 76,092 shares (≈$3.0M) in the last three months.
• Analysts are mixed but optimistic overall — the consensus is a “Moderate Buy” with a $46.56 price target — while recent quarterly results showed an EPS miss (‑$0.08 vs $0.28 expected) alongside a revenue beat of $6.01 billion.

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lessened its position in International Paper Company (NYSE:IP - Free Report) by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,576,579 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 258,212 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 0.68% of International Paper worth $140,881,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 64,047,079 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,971,784,000 after purchasing an additional 167,889 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 54,330,790 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,520,945,000 after purchasing an additional 3,768,772 shares during the period. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 51.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 48,990,719 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,272,966,000 after purchasing an additional 16,622,062 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,612,060 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,374,000,000 after purchasing an additional 225,444 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,121,170 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $423,222,000 after purchasing an additional 960,240 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.95% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on International Paper from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on International Paper from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on International Paper from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price objective on International Paper from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Paper news, Director Anders Gustafsson bought 13,217 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $37.83 per share, with a total value of $499,999.11. Following the acquisition, the director owned 26,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $987,060.36. This trade represents a 102.66% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew K. Silvernail bought 50,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $39.98 per share, with a total value of $1,999,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,999,000. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders acquired 76,092 shares of company stock valued at $2,999,064. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

International Paper Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:IP opened at $36.53 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.44 and a beta of 1.14. International Paper Company has a 12-month low of $33.57 and a 12-month high of $56.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

International Paper (NYSE:IP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.36). The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.90 billion. International Paper had a negative net margin of 14.12% and a negative return on equity of 0.35%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 53.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.02) EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that International Paper Company will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

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