International Paper (NYSE:IP) Short Interest Update

International Paper (NYSE:IP) saw a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 51,490,000 shares, a growth of 16.3% from the October 31st total of 44,260,000 shares. Approximately 15.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,550,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 11.3 days.

International Paper Price Performance

NYSE IP traded up $0.29 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $58.75. 2,803,556 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,275,297. International Paper has a 1-year low of $32.70 and a 1-year high of $60.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $52.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company has a market cap of $20.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.21 and a beta of 1.02.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.20. International Paper had a net margin of 2.25% and a return on equity of 6.49%. The firm had revenue of $4.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that International Paper will post 1.22 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. International Paper’s payout ratio is 158.12%.

Insider Transactions at International Paper

In related news, SVP Joseph R. Saab sold 2,440 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.30, for a total value of $115,412.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 18,668 shares in the company, valued at $882,996.40. This trade represents a 11.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Holly G. Goughnour sold 5,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.22, for a total transaction of $236,100.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 16,788 shares in the company, valued at approximately $792,729.36. The trade was a 22.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,040 shares of company stock worth $540,104. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Paper

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC lifted its stake in International Paper by 88.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,839,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $871,447,000 after purchasing an additional 8,370,273 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of International Paper by 133.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,214,754 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $613,367,000 after purchasing an additional 8,132,332 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new position in shares of International Paper during the 2nd quarter worth about $119,012,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in International Paper by 511.1% in the third 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 acquiring an additional 2,484,386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted 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 worth $206,921,000 after buying an additional 2,354,341 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of International Paper from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $61.00 target price (up from $57.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, November 1st. BNP Paribas cut shares of International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Argus upgraded International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $52.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.54.

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.