International Paper (NYSE:IP) Stock Position Raised by Royal London Asset Management Ltd.

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 279,590 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 12,097 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned about 0.08% of International Paper worth $10,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in International Paper by 208.3% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 703 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of International Paper in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in International Paper by 309.0% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 859 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 649 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in International Paper during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of IP stock traded down $0.46 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.89. 3,099,169 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,719,274. International Paper has a 52 week low of $30.23 and a 52 week high of $46.34. The stock has a market cap of $15.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.61 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $39.97 and its 200-day moving average is $37.76.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.06). International Paper had a return on equity of 7.45% and a net margin of 0.93%. The company had revenue of $4.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. International Paper’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that International Paper will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is 377.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.58, for a total value of $26,748.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 45,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,027,453.82. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $117,678 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised International Paper from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on International Paper from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Bank of America raised shares of International Paper from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $37.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $38.00 to $57.00 in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.71.

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.