Allstate Corp Buys 19,482 Shares of International Paper Company $IP

Allstate Corp lifted its stake in shares of International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) by 112.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 36,749 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,482 shares during the quarter. Allstate Corp’s holdings in International Paper were worth $1,448,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in International Paper by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,175 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its holdings in International Paper by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 7,750 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $305,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its holdings in International Paper by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 8,456 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $333,000 after buying an additional 267 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in International Paper by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 44,996 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,088,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the period. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its holdings in International Paper by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 5,450 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $253,000 after buying an additional 271 shares during the period. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

International Paper Stock Performance

NYSE:IP opened at $33.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.73 billion, a PE ratio of -5.26 and a beta of 0.93. International Paper Company has a 52-week low of $29.26 and a 52-week high of $56.13. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.52.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.03). International Paper had a negative return on equity of 0.49% and a negative net margin of 13.42%.The company had revenue of $5.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.17 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that International Paper Company will post 1.38 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is currently -29.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group dropped their price objective on International Paper from $40.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on International Paper from $48.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on International Paper in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Zacks Research lowered International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on International Paper from $46.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Paper news, Director Anders Gustafsson bought 13,217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $37.83 per share, with a total value of $499,999.11. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 26,092 shares in the company, valued at $987,060.36. This represents a 102.66% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Scott Tozier acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $31.30 per share, for a total transaction of $313,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 10,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $313,782.50. This represents a 40,000.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have bought 36,092 shares of company stock worth $1,313,064. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

International Paper Company Profile

International Paper is a global producer of renewable fiber-based products, focused primarily on pulp, paper, and packaging. The company manufactures containerboard and corrugated packaging used for shipping and retail display, as well as a range of specialty papers and pulp products that serve industrial, consumer goods, and e-commerce customers. Its product portfolio is oriented toward large-scale packaging solutions, tissue and paper grades, and raw pulp for a variety of manufacturing uses.

Founded in 1898, International Paper is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, and is one of the largest and longest-established companies in the forest products sector.