Perbak Capital Partners LLP Purchases New Position in International Paper Company $IP

Key Points

• Perbak Capital Partners LLP has acquired a new stake of 54,004 shares in International Paper Company, valued at approximately $2.88 million, making it the 8th largest position in their portfolio.
• Overall, 81.95% of International Paper's stock is owned by institutional investors and several large firms, including AXA S.A., have significantly increased their stakes.
• International Paper announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4625 per share, reflecting a 3.7% yield, despite a negative net margin and a missed earnings estimate in their recent quarterly results.

Perbak Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of International Paper Company (NYSE:IP - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 54,004 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $2,881,000. International Paper accounts for about 2.1% of Perbak Capital Partners LLP's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 52.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 62,623,540 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,340,966,000 after buying an additional 21,428,455 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in International Paper by 8.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 51,798,017 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,763,426,000 after acquiring an additional 4,201,422 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in International Paper by 19.4% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 17,145,485 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $914,712,000 after acquiring an additional 2,782,042 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in International Paper by 21.4% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,019,743 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $481,203,000 after acquiring an additional 1,590,137 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in International Paper by 1.1% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,040,128 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $428,941,000 after acquiring an additional 85,732 shares during the period. 81.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on IP shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded International Paper from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Zacks Research lowered International Paper from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $43.00 price objective (up from $40.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Bank of America upgraded International Paper from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $55.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Paper currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $55.65.

International Paper Price Performance

IP stock traded up $0.32 during trading on Friday, reaching $48.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,605,843 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,491,029. International Paper Company has a 1 year low of $43.27 and a 1 year high of $60.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $25.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -486.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.05. The company's fifty day moving average is $49.72 and its 200-day moving average is $49.33.

International Paper (NYSE:IP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $6.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.64 billion. International Paper had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a positive return on equity of 2.63%. The business's revenue was up 42.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that International Paper Company will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. International Paper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1,850.00%.

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.