Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of International Paper Call Options (NYSE:IP)

International Paper (NYSE:IP) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 22,683 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 509% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,723 call options.

International Paper Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of IP traded down $0.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $57.14. 7,345,428 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,413,601. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.84 and a beta of 1.03. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $56.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.51. 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 earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.05). International Paper had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 2.25%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that International Paper will post 1.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio is 158.12%.

Insider Activity at International Paper

In other news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total transaction of $35,034.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 37,145 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,168,896.55. The trade was a 1.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Paper

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IP. FMR LLC lifted its position in International Paper by 88.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,839,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $871,447,000 after acquiring an additional 8,370,273 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 511.1% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,970,432 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $145,106,000 after purchasing an additional 2,484,386 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of International Paper by 125.1% during the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,235,846 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $206,921,000 after buying an additional 2,354,341 shares during the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC bought a new stake in International Paper in the 3rd quarter worth about $84,526,000. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its position in International Paper by 147.2% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 2,019,806 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $108,706,000 after buying an additional 1,202,632 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on IP. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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, November 1st. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of International Paper from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given 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 presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.99.

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.