Truist Financial Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for International Paper (NYSE:IP) Stock

International Paper (NYSE:IP) had its target price increased by investment analysts at Truist Financial from $61.00 to $65.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Truist Financial’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 21.29% from the stock’s previous close.

IP has been the subject of several other reports. BNP Paribas downgraded International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of International Paper from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Paper presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.99.

International Paper Price Performance

International Paper stock opened at $53.59 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $18.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.80 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $56.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.10. International Paper has a 1 year low of $32.70 and a 1 year high of $60.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $4.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.70 billion. International Paper had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 2.25%. International Paper’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that International Paper will post 1.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total value of $28,848.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,872,475.60. This trade represents a 1.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 2,400 shares of company stock worth $129,696 in the last ninety days. 0.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IP. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of International Paper during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in International Paper during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Paper in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 448 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of International Paper in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

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.