Fractal Investments LLC Takes $307,000 Position in International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Fractal Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 8,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $307,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in IP. Greenhaven Associates Inc. increased its holdings in International Paper by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 9,835,395 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $355,550,000 after acquiring an additional 25,640 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in International Paper by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,811,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $312,553,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011,315 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC purchased a new stake in International Paper in the 3rd quarter worth about $144,509,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in International Paper by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,615,609 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $128,246,000 after acquiring an additional 151,084 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in International Paper by 35.6% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,961,232 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $105,035,000 after acquiring an additional 777,273 shares during the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on IP. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $43.00 target price on shares of International Paper in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Citigroup upgraded International Paper from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $46.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Argus downgraded International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Bank of America upgraded International Paper from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $37.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.13.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of IP traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $34.43. 8,135,417 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,885,861. The stock has a market cap of $11.96 billion, a PE ratio of 41.99 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.83. International Paper has a 12 month low of $29.00 and a 12 month high of $41.28.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.67 billion. International Paper had a return on equity of 8.87% and a net margin of 1.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.87 EPS. Equities analysts expect that International Paper will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at International Paper

In related news, SVP James P. Jr. Royalty sold 5,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.75, for a total transaction of $201,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 69,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,414,708. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,800 shares of company stock valued at $310,438. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

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.