International Paper (NYSE:IP) Shares Sold by Aptus Capital Advisors LLC

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC cut its stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 35.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,187 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,864 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in International Paper were worth $224,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of International Paper by 35.1% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,135,702 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $824,716,000 after acquiring an additional 5,492,035 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of International Paper by 133.7% during the second 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 buying an additional 8,132,332 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of International Paper by 61.5% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,030,839 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $471,065,000 after buying an additional 4,960,005 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of International Paper by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,847,682 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $319,844,000 after buying an additional 35,930 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in International Paper during the fourth quarter worth about $94,913,000. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Clay R. Ellis sold 9,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.83, for a total value of $439,470.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 49,832 shares in the company, valued at $2,433,296.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, SVP Clay R. Ellis sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.83, for a total transaction of $439,470.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 49,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,433,296.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.10, for a total value of $27,660.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 41,002 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,890,192.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,000 shares of company stock worth $573,822 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of International Paper in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $48.70 target price on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on International Paper from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $38.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of International Paper from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.21.

International Paper Price Performance

International Paper stock opened at $47.31 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $45.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.59. International Paper has a 1 year low of $31.76 and a 1 year high of $49.24. The company has a market capitalization of $16.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 96.55 and a beta of 1.06.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.14. International Paper had a return on equity of 7.28% and a net margin of 2.34%. The company had revenue of $4.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $0.4625 dividend. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is currently 377.55%.

About International Paper

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.