Clearwater Paper (CLW) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Clearwater Paper Corporation is an independent manufacturer of premium tissue and pulp and paperboard products for private-label and commercial customers in North America. The company operates through two core segments: Consumer Products, which produces bathroom tissue, paper towels and other away-from-home tissue products under private-label contracts; and Pulp & Paperboard, which supplies bleached paperboard used in folding cartons, foodservice packaging and specialty paper applications.

The Consumer Products segment services retail grocers, warehouse clubs, online merchants and janitorial distributors, leveraging multiple converting facilities to produce roll and folded tissue items for both household and institutional use. The Pulp & Paperboard segment operates bleaching and finishing operations, delivering high-brightness pulp and premium board grades to packaging converters and brand owners who seek sustainable, food-contact-approved solutions. Clearwater Paper emphasizes operational efficiency and environmental responsibility, maintaining recycling and energy-recovery initiatives across its mill network.

Headquartered in Spokane, Washington, Clearwater Paper was established as a publicly traded company in 2008 following a spin-off from Potlatch Corporation. Since its inception, the company has expanded its manufacturing footprint to include facilities in Idaho, Arkansas, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ontario, Canada, supporting a broad geographic customer base. Clearwater Paper’s integrated supply chain model enables it to manage wood procurement, pulping, bleaching and converting processes under one operating structure.

Under the leadership of President and Chief Executive Officer Ronald S. Casey, Clearwater Paper continues to focus on innovation in product development and sustainable fiber sourcing. The company’s customer-centric approach and commitment to quality have positioned it as a key supplier to retail chains, foodservice operators and industrial distributors across North America.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $18.95 to $19.36
• 50-Day Range: $18.72 to $22.94
• 52-Week Range: $18.71 to $33.56
• Volume: 35,283 shs
• Average Volume: 246,148 shs
• Market Capitalization: $312.08 million
• P/E Ratio: 1.60
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Price Target: $32.00
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy

Clearwater Paper Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Clearwater Paper scored higher than 90% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 24th out of 191 stocks in the basic materials sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 4.3 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Moderate Buy

Consensus Rating

Clearwater Paper has received a consensus rating of Moderate Buy. The company's average rating score is 2.60, and is based on 4 buy ratings, no hold ratings, and 1 sell rating.

Upside Potential

Clearwater Paper has a consensus price target of $32.00, representing about 68.0% upside from its current price of $19.05.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Clearwater Paper has been the subject of 5 research reports in the past 90 days, demonstrating strong analyst interest in this stock.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: N/A

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Clearwater Paper is 1.58, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 231.67.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Clearwater Paper is 1.58, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Basic Materials sector average P/E ratio of about 157.20.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Clearwater Paper has a P/B Ratio of 0.37. P/B Ratios below 1 indicate that a company could be undervalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 5.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Healthy

Percentage of Shares Shorted

2.73% of the float of Clearwater Paper has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Clearwater Paper has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 1.9, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Clearwater Paper has recently decreased by 6.28%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 0.0 / 5
• Dividend Strength: N/A

Dividend Yield

Clearwater Paper does not currently pay a dividend.

Dividend Growth

Clearwater Paper does not have a long track record of dividend growth.

Sustainability and ESG

• Score: 1.7 / 5
• Environmental Score: -2.64

Percentage of Shares Shorted

2.73% of the float of Clearwater Paper has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Clearwater Paper has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 1.9, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Clearwater Paper has recently decreased by 6.28%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving significantly.

News and Social Media

• Score: 1.8 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.30

News Sentiment

Clearwater Paper has a news sentiment score of 0.30. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a lower news sentiment than the 0.56 average news sentiment score of Basic Materials companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 2 news articles for Clearwater Paper this week, compared to 4 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

4 people have searched for CLW on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is an increase of 300% compared to the previous 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 1.7 / 5
• Insider Trading: N/A

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Clearwater Paper insiders have not sold or bought any company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

Only 3.55% of the stock of Clearwater Paper is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

89.98% of the stock of Clearwater Paper is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

CLW Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions

How have CLW shares performed this year?

Clearwater Paper's stock was trading at $29.77 at the beginning of the year. Since then, CLW stock has decreased by 36.0% and is now trading at $19.05.

How were Clearwater Paper's earnings last quarter?

Clearwater Paper Corporation (NYSE:CLW) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March, 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.30) EPS for the quarter. The basic materials company earned ($358.30) million during the quarter. Clearwater Paper had a net margin of 12.98% and a negative trailing twelve-month return on equity of 4.11%.
Read the conference call transcript.

How will Clearwater Paper's stock buyback program work?

Clearwater Paper's Board of Directors authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, November 4th 2024, which authorizes the company to repurchase $100,000,000 in shares, according to EventVestor. This means that the company could reacquire up to 23.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Does Clearwater Paper have any subsidiaries?

The following companies are subsidiaries of Clearwater Paper: Manchester Industries Inc. of Virginia, Cellu Tissue CityForest LLC, Cellu Tissue Corporation–Natural Dam, Cellu Tissue Corporation–Neenah, Cellu Tissue Corporation–Oklahoma City, Cellu Tissue Holdings Inc., Cellu Tissue LLC, and others.

Who are Clearwater Paper's major shareholders?

Top institutional shareholders of Clearwater Paper include Wedge Capital Management L L P NC (0.84%) and Assenagon Asset Management S.A. (0.52%). Insiders that own company stock include Kari G Moyes, Michael S Gadd, Steve M Bowden, Michael John Murphy and Rebecca Anne Barckley.
View institutional ownership trends.

How do I buy shares of Clearwater Paper?

Shares of CLW stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services.

What other stocks do shareholders of Clearwater Paper own?

Based on aggregate information from My MarketBeat watchlists, some other companies that Clearwater Paper investors own include NVIDIA (NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), Tesla (TSLA), Meta Platforms (META), Netflix (NFLX) and Home Depot (HD).

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 3/07/2024
• Today: 10/14/2025
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 11/03/2025
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2025

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NYSE
• Sector: Basic Materials
• Industry: PAPER &REL PRDS
• Sub-Industry: Paper Products
• Current Symbol: NYSE:CLW
• CIK: 1441236
• Web: www.clearwaterpaper.com
• Phone: (509) 344-5900
• Fax: N/A
• Employees: 2,200
• Year Founded: 2008

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Clearwater Paper: $32.00
• High Price Target: $36.00
• Low Price Target: $30.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +68.0%
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy
• Rating Score (0-4): 2.60
• Research Coverage: 5 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $12.05
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 1.58
• Forward P/E Ratio: N/A
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: $196.30 million
• Net Margins: 12.98%
• Pretax Margin: -2.93%
• Return on Equity: -4.11%
• Return on Assets: -1.76%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.39
• Current Ratio: 1.97
• Quick Ratio: 0.87

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $1.38 billion
• Price / Sales: 0.22
• Cash Flow: $3.90 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 4.89
• Book Value: $51.58 per share
• Price / Book: 0.37

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 16,100,000
• Free Float: 15,532,000
• Market Cap: $306.71 million
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.17