Heartland Advisors Inc. Sells 5,728 Shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Heartland Advisors Inc. cut its stake in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 4.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 131,557 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,728 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc.’s holdings in International Paper were worth $7,080,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of International Paper by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,195,085 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,217,119,000 after buying an additional 340,383 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in International Paper by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,368,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $407,463,000 after acquiring an additional 99,720 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings 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 worth $145,106,000 after purchasing an additional 2,484,386 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in International Paper in the fourth quarter valued at about $109,201,000. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its stake in shares of International Paper by 147.2% during the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 2,019,806 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $108,706,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202,632 shares in the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 price objective (down previously from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Bank of America began coverage on International Paper in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of International Paper in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.32.

International Paper Trading Down 2.5 %

NYSE:IP opened at $53.23 on Friday. International Paper has a 12 month low of $33.16 and a 12 month high of $60.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.90, a PEG ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.67.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) 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%. Analysts expect that International Paper will post 2.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.48%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is presently 117.83%.

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.