3,728 Shares in International Paper (NYSE:IP) Acquired by Simmons Bank

Simmons Bank acquired a new stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 3,728 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America started coverage on International Paper in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. BNP Paribas lowered shares of International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price target (down from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Paper presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.88.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of IP opened at $56.28 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $55.67 and its 200-day moving average is $52.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.55 billion, a PE ratio of 35.85, a PEG ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.02. International Paper has a fifty-two week low of $33.16 and a fifty-two week high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.05). International Paper had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 4.75%. Equities analysts forecast that International Paper will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. International Paper’s payout ratio is 117.83%.

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.