abrdn plc Sells 750 Shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP)

abrdn plc cut its holdings in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,406 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 750 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc’s holdings in International Paper were worth $4,317,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in IP. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of International Paper by 88.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,839,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $871,447,000 after acquiring an additional 8,370,273 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 511.1% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,970,432 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $145,106,000 after purchasing an additional 2,484,386 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of International Paper by 125.1% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,235,846 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $206,921,000 after purchasing an additional 2,354,341 shares during the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of International Paper during the 3rd quarter valued at about $84,526,000. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 147.2% in the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 2,019,806 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $108,706,000 after buying an additional 1,202,632 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Paper

In other news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total transaction of $35,034.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,145 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,168,896.55. This represents a 1.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of International Paper stock opened at $56.15 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.76 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $55.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.99. International Paper has a 52 week low of $33.16 and a 52 week high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.05). International Paper had a return on equity of 4.75% and a net margin of 2.99%. As a group, analysts expect that International Paper will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. International Paper’s payout ratio is 117.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on IP shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, January 31st. BNP Paribas lowered International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 target price (down from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, International Paper currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.88.

International Paper 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.