Everence Capital Management Inc. Invests $828,000 in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 15,390 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $828,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in IP. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of International Paper in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in International Paper by 313.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 591 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in International Paper during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas downgraded 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 report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of International Paper from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective (up from $57.00) on shares of International Paper in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.54.

International Paper Price Performance

IP stock opened at $52.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The company’s 50-day moving average is $55.94 and its 200-day moving average is $49.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.36 billion, a PE ratio of 45.17 and a beta of 1.02. International Paper has a 1 year low of $32.70 and a 1 year high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $4.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. International Paper had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 2.25%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.64 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 158.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Paper news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.50, for a total transaction of $32,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 38,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,051,457.50. The trade was a 1.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,400 shares of company stock worth $129,696. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

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.