Monte Financial Group LLC Sells 85,930 Shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Monte Financial Group LLC reduced its stake in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 95.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,772 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 85,930 shares during the period. Monte Financial Group LLC’s holdings in International Paper were worth $203,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of International Paper by 88.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,839,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $871,447,000 after buying an additional 8,370,273 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in International Paper by 1.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,368,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $407,463,000 after acquiring an additional 99,720 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in International Paper by 125.1% in the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,235,846 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $206,921,000 after purchasing an additional 2,354,341 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of International Paper by 0.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,579,679 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $174,867,000 after purchasing an additional 9,774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of International Paper by 19.5% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,295,926 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $161,006,000 after purchasing an additional 537,825 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on IP shares. Truist Financial upped their price target on International Paper from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. BNP Paribas cut International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $48.20 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on International Paper from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.99.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.19, for a total transaction of $33,714.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 37,745 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,120,891.55. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 1,800 shares of company stock valued at $100,848 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

International Paper Price Performance

IP opened at $60.08 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $56.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $51.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.35 and a beta of 1.03. International Paper has a 52-week low of $32.70 and a 52-week high of $60.36.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its earnings results 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 net margin of 2.25% and a return on equity of 6.49%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.64 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that International Paper will post 1.18 EPS for the current year.

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.