International Paper (NYSE:IP) Given “Outperform” Rating at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reiterated their outperform rating on shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) in a research report report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $64.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on IP. BNP Paribas cut International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Truist Financial restated 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.88.

International Paper Stock Performance

NYSE:IP opened at $55.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market cap of $19.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.56 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $56.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.67. International Paper has a 1-year low of $32.70 and a 1-year high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.05). International Paper had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 2.25%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.07 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is presently 158.12%.

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 shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $35,034.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 37,145 shares in the company, valued at $2,168,896.55. This represents a 1.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Paper

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in International Paper in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in International Paper in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in International Paper during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in International Paper in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of International Paper by 313.3% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 591 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

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.