First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Buys 1,687 Shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. grew its stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 22.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 9,280 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,687 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in International Paper were worth $453,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in International Paper by 35.1% during the 1st 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 purchasing an additional 5,492,035 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in International Paper during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $119,012,000. Samlyn Capital LLC bought a new stake in International Paper during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $88,966,000. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in International Paper during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $81,187,000. 81.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on International Paper from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $61.00 price target (up from $57.00) on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday. Argus raised shares of International Paper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $52.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of International Paper in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $48.70 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Paper presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Paper news, VP Holly G. Goughnour sold 5,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 16,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $792,729.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other International Paper news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were 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 directly owns 38,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,051,457.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Holly G. Goughnour sold 5,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $792,729.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,440 shares of company stock valued at $938,486 over the last ninety days. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

International Paper Price Performance

NYSE:IP opened at $55.77 on Monday. International Paper has a 1-year low of $31.76 and a 1-year high of $56.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.37 billion, a PE ratio of 47.67 and a beta of 1.02.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.20. International Paper had a net margin of 2.25% and a return on equity of 6.49%. The business had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.70 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is presently 158.12%.

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.