Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Has $1.01 Million Holdings in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lowered its stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 18,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 900 shares during the quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in International Paper were worth $1,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in IP. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of International Paper during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position 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 worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank lifted its position in shares of International Paper by 107.7% during the 4th quarter. City State Bank now owns 675 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BNP Paribas cut International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 price target (down previously from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on International Paper in a report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.88.

International Paper Trading Up 1.5 %

IP stock opened at $56.25 on Tuesday. International Paper has a 1-year low of $33.16 and a 1-year high of $60.36. The firm has a market cap of $19.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.83 and a beta of 1.02. The business’s 50 day moving average is $55.45 and its 200-day moving average is $52.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that International Paper will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.29%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 117.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 transaction 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.