Yousif Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Yousif Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 50,884 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,177 shares during the quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in International Paper were worth $2,739,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC grew its position 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 valued at $871,447,000 after purchasing an additional 8,370,273 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in International Paper by 511.1% in 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 buying an additional 2,484,386 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in 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 buying an additional 2,354,341 shares during the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC purchased a new position in International Paper during the third quarter worth $84,526,000. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP raised 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 acquiring an additional 1,202,632 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

International Paper Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of IP 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.49. 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 twelve month low of $33.16 and a twelve month 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 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that International Paper will post 2.89 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 $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is currently 117.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of International Paper in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 target price (down previously from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Paper presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.88.

Insider Transactions 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 value of $35,034.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,168,896.55. This represents a 1.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.