BofA/Merrill Lynch Upgrades International Paper (IP) and RockTenn (RKT) to Buy on MLP Prospects
Get Alerts IP Hot Sheet
Rating Summary:
10 Buy, 8 Hold, 6 Sell
Rating Trend: Up
Today's Overall Ratings:
Up: 13 | Down: 11 | New: 11
Join SI Premium – FREE
BofA/Merrill Lynch analyst George Staphos upgraded both International Paper (NYSE: IP) and RockTenn (NYSE: RKT)
from Neutral to Buy with a price targets of $55 (from $33) and $56 (from $54), respectively. The firm also reiterated a Buy rating on Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE: PKG) and raised his price target to $82 (from $79.).
Staphos said following the interest created by Perry Capital in July arguing for MLP structures, he is increasingly of the view that the companies will attempt to convert a portion of their businesses to MLPs. Doing so would revalue the stocks.
The analyst said using a conservative model framework, they estimate 20-30% upside potential in the shares through a conversion. They expect the most upside could come from RKT (~28%) followed by PKG (~25%) and IP (~22%).
PKG remains the firm's top pick in containerboard as its offers the best fundamental outlook of the three containerboard stocks they cover.
For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on International Paper click here. For more ratings news on International Paper click here.
Shares of International Paper closed at $47.37 yesterday.
Serious News for Serious Traders! Try StreetInsider.com Premium Free!
You May Also Be Interested In
- BofA Securities Upgrades Estee Lauder (EL) to Buy; 'Earnings have bottomed'
- Dollar General (DG) PT Raised to $175 at Argus
- Bank of America (BAC) PT Raised to $44 at Wells Fargo
Create E-mail Alert Related Categories
Analyst Comments, Analyst PT Change, Rumors, UpgradesRelated Entities
Perry CapitalSign up for StreetInsider Free!
Receive full access to all new and archived articles, unlimited portfolio tracking, e-mail alerts, custom newswires and RSS feeds - and more!