NorthRock Partners LLC Buys New Position in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

NorthRock Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 5,239 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $282,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of IP. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of International Paper by 28.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 33,330 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,794,000 after purchasing an additional 7,424 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of International Paper by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 878,221 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $46,686,000 after purchasing an additional 15,904 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of International Paper in the fourth quarter worth $372,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of International Paper in the fourth quarter worth $788,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of International Paper by 26.7% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 41,106 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,232,000 after purchasing an additional 8,669 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.85, for a total value of $336,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 31,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,413,896.25. This represents a 19.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Bank of America assumed coverage on International Paper in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on International Paper in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $59.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial lowered their target price on International Paper from $64.00 to $59.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $40.00 target price (down previously from $45.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, International Paper has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $54.21.

International Paper Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of International Paper stock traded down $0.95 on Friday, hitting $47.68. The stock had a trading volume of 2,695,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,851,314. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $48.51 and a 200 day moving average of $53.20. International Paper has a twelve month low of $41.50 and a twelve month high of $60.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.37, a PEG ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.03.

International Paper (NYSE:IP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.12). International Paper had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 4.75%. The firm had revenue of $5.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.17 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 27.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that International Paper will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. International Paper's dividend payout ratio is currently 158.12%.

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.