Hill City Capital LP Buys 1,150,000 Shares of International Paper (NYSE:IP)

Hill City Capital LP grew its holdings in International Paper (NYSE:IP - Free Report) by 287.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,550,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 1,150,000 shares during the period. International Paper accounts for approximately 5.0% of Hill City Capital LP's portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Hill City Capital LP owned about 0.45% of International Paper worth $75,718,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in International Paper by 5.7% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 3,282 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in International Paper by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 12,270 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $599,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its holdings in International Paper by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,396 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its position in International Paper by 0.3% during the second quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 76,616 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,306,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altrius Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of International Paper by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 112,487 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,854,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. 81.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Paper Stock Performance

International Paper stock traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $58.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,700,337 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,284,746. The firm has a market cap of $20.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.18 and a beta of 1.02. International Paper has a twelve month low of $32.70 and a twelve month high of $60.36. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $52.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

International Paper (NYSE:IP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $4.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. International Paper had a net margin of 2.25% and a return on equity of 6.49%. International Paper's quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that International Paper will post 1.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. International Paper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 158.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Argus upgraded International Paper from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $52.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. BNP Paribas cut shares of International Paper from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $48.20 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $61.00 price objective (up previously from $57.00) on shares of International Paper in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of 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, three have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $51.54.

Insider Transactions at International Paper

In related news, VP Holly G. Goughnour sold 5,000 shares of International Paper stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.22, for a total transaction of $236,100.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 16,788 shares of the company's stock, valued at $792,729.36. The trade was a 22.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kathryn D. Sullivan sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total transaction of $35,034.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 37,145 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,168,896.55. The trade was a 1.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,040 shares of company stock worth $540,104. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

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.