CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Grows Stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 403,824 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 25,037 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned 0.12% of International Paper worth $21,715,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of International Paper by 48.9% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,559,812 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,429,449,000 after acquiring an additional 8,720,575 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in International Paper during the fourth quarter valued at $109,201,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 147.2% during the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 2,019,806 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $108,706,000 after buying an additional 1,202,632 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of International Paper in the 4th quarter worth about $34,974,000. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in International Paper by 645.6% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 577,453 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,079,000 after acquiring an additional 500,001 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on IP. StockNews.com cut International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target on shares of International Paper in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of International Paper in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price target (down previously from $65.00) on shares of International Paper in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on International Paper from $52.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.32.

International Paper Price Performance

NYSE IP opened at $46.32 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.50, a PEG ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 0.99. International Paper has a 1-year low of $33.16 and a 1-year high of $60.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $51.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.61.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.05). International Paper had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 4.75%. On average, equities analysts predict that International Paper will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. International Paper’s payout ratio is 117.83%.

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.