International Paper (NYSE:IP) Given “Buy” Rating at Argus

International Paper (NYSE:IP)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by equities research analysts at Argus in a research report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $45.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock. Argus’ target price would suggest a potential upside of 29.02% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on IP. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of International Paper from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on International Paper from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Loop Capital set a $61.00 price target on International Paper in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Zacks Research upgraded International Paper from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded International Paper from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.82.

International Paper Stock Down 2.3%

IP stock traded down $0.82 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $34.88. The company had a trading volume of 904,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,298,072. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $18.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.93. International Paper has a fifty-two week low of $29.26 and a fifty-two week high of $50.25.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.08. International Paper had a negative net margin of 14.20% and a negative return on equity of 1.09%. The firm had revenue of $6 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.20 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that International Paper will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Holly G. Goughnour sold 3,500 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.96, for a total transaction of $146,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 34,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,437,046.08. The trade was a 9.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP William Hamic sold 24,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total transaction of $1,009,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 106,952 shares in the company, valued at $4,406,422.40. This represents a 18.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Paper

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IP. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,999,909 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,257,297,000 after purchasing an additional 2,189,597 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in International Paper by 59.3% in the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,437 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in International Paper by 50.0% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,167,393 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $44,478,000 after acquiring an additional 389,092 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in International Paper by 21.7% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 22,358 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $852,000 after acquiring an additional 3,988 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in International Paper by 87.7% during the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 60,427 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,302,000 after acquiring an additional 28,236 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Paper Company Profile

International Paper Company (NYSE: IP) is a global producer of sustainable packaging and paper-based products. The company manufactures containerboard, corrugated packaging, and other fiber-based packaging solutions used to transport and protect goods across a range of industries. Its offerings also include absorbent pulp and cellulose fibers used in products such as diapers, hygiene items, and other consumer and industrial applications.

Founded in 1898, International Paper has grown through the development and operation of paper mills, packaging facilities, and related manufacturing assets.