Cerity Partners LLC Purchases 159,923 Shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in International Paper (NYSE:IP) by 1,323.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 172,005 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 159,923 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in International Paper were worth $6,218,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS raised its holdings in shares of International Paper by 6.6% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 51,817 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,391,000 after purchasing an additional 3,209 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its position in International Paper by 4.5% in the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 8,660 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. grew its position in International Paper by 45.5% in the first quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 675 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. acquired a new stake in International Paper in the 1st quarter valued at $206,000. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in International Paper by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 41,970 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,947,000 after buying an additional 676 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

International Paper Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of IP stock opened at $36.77 on Tuesday. International Paper has a 12-month low of $29.00 and a 12-month high of $41.28. The company has a market capitalization of $12.77 billion, a PE ratio of 44.84 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $35.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.07. International Paper had a return on equity of 8.87% and a net margin of 1.52%. The business had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.67 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.87 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that International Paper will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP James P. Jr. Royalty sold 5,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were 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 $2,414,708. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 8,200 shares of company stock worth $287,770 in the last quarter. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America upgraded International Paper from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $37.00 to $42.00 in a report on Monday, March 4th. Citigroup raised International Paper from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $36.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. StockNews.com downgraded International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 14th. Argus downgraded shares of International Paper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of International Paper from $39.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.13.

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.