Despite maintaining gross margins near 20.7% in 2026Q1, the company reported an operating margin of only 2.9%, reflecting an inability to scale overhead costs effectively.
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 | Dec'12 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Dec'08 | Dec'07 | Dec'06 | Dec'05 | Dec'04 | Dec'03 | Dec'02 | Dec'01 | Dec'00 | Dec'99 | Dec'98 | Dec'97 | Dec'96 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 24.97B | 24.9B | 18.62B | 18.92B | 21.16B | 19.36B | 17.57B | 18.32B | 23.31B | 21.74B | 19.5B | 20.68B | 23.62B | 23.48B | 21.85B | 26.03B | 25.18B | 23.37B | 24.83B | 21.89B | 22B | 21.7B | 20.72B | 22.14B | 23.9B | 26.36B | 28.18B | 24.57B | 23.98B | 24.56B | 20.14B |
| Revenue Growth % | 25.45% | 33.71% | -1.57% | -10.61% | 9.29% | 10.24% | -4.11% | -21.41% | 7.19% | 11.53% | -5.71% | -12.46% | 0.57% | 7.46% | -16.06% | 3.4% | 7.76% | -5.89% | 13.43% | -0.48% | 1.36% | 4.72% | -6.4% | -7.37% | -9.35% | -6.45% | 14.68% | 2.48% | -2.35% | 21.91% | 1.75% |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 18.02B | 17.55B | 13.38B | 15.06B | 15.14B | 13.83B | 13.38B | 12.67B | 15.55B | 14.8B | 13.42B | 14.31B | 16.25B | 16.28B | 15.29B | 18.96B | 18.48B | 15.22B | 18.74B | 16.06B | 16.25B | 16.33B | 15.2B | 16.44B | 17.47B | 19.41B | 20.08B | 17.96B | 17.76B | 18.09B | 14.88B |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 70.47% | 71.84% | 79.62% | 71.56% | 71.44% | 76.2% | 69.17% | 66.74% | 68.08% | 68.83% | 69.23% | 68.82% | 69.34% | 69.96% | 72.83% | 73.4% | 65.14% | 75.48% | 73.37% | 73.87% | 75.27% | 73.37% | 74.28% | 73.09% | 73.62% | 71.26% | 73.09% | 74.06% | 73.66% | 73.89% |
| Gross Profit | 6.95B | 7.35B | 5.24B | 3.85B | 6.02B | 5.53B | 4.18B | 5.65B | 7.75B | 6.94B | 6.08B | 6.36B | 7.36B | 7.2B | 6.57B | 7.07B | 6.7B | 8.15B | 6.09B | 5.83B | 5.75B | 5.37B | 5.52B | 5.7B | 6.43B | 6.95B | 8.1B | 6.61B | 6.22B | 6.47B | 5.26B |
| Gross Margin % | 27.83% | 29.53% | 28.16% | 20.38% | 28.44% | 28.56% | 23.8% | 30.83% | 33.26% | 31.92% | 31.17% | 30.77% | 31.18% | 30.66% | 30.04% | 27.17% | 26.6% | 34.86% | 24.52% | 26.63% | 26.13% | 24.73% | 26.63% | 25.72% | 26.91% | 26.38% | 28.74% | 26.91% | 25.94% | 26.34% | 26.11% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | 40.21% | 36.01% | -35.94% | 8.8% | 32.32% | -25.99% | -27.13% | 11.67% | 14.24% | -4.5% | -13.59% | 2.25% | 9.69% | -7.2% | 5.63% | -17.79% | 33.83% | 4.41% | 1.44% | 7.1% | -2.74% | -3.13% | -11.44% | -7.52% | -14.13% | 22.46% | 6.3% | -3.83% | 22.98% | -10.86% |
| Operating Expenses | 9.56B | 10.17B | 4.77B | 2.67B | 4.26B | 4.07B | 2.78B | 3.9B | 4.79B | 4.57B | 3.97B | 4.11B | 4.9B | 5.09B | 4.78B | 4.75B | 4.9B | 4.87B | 4.76B | 4.12B | 4.3B | 4.3B | 4.28B | 4.42B | 4.75B | 5.52B | 5.59B | 5.07B | 5.01B | 5.23B | 3.82B |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 40.85% | 25.6% | 14.1% | 20.15% | 20.99% | 15.8% | 21.31% | 20.55% | 21% | 20.38% | 19.89% | 20.75% | 21.67% | 21.86% | 18.26% | 19.44% | 20.83% | 19.18% | 18.82% | 19.53% | 19.8% | 20.67% | 19.98% | 19.89% | 20.93% | 19.84% | 20.64% | 20.89% | 21.3% | 18.97% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 4.28B | 3.73B | 3.31B | 2.51B | 3.08B | 2.83B | 2.64B | 2.7B | 3.29B | 3.06B | 2.69B | 2.79B | 3.31B | 3.38B | 3.14B | 3.28B | 3.25B | 3.21B | 3.23B | 2.87B | 2.92B | 2.81B | 2.8B | 2.84B | 3.02B | 3.38B | 3.39B | 3.18B | 3.12B | 3.25B | 2.43B |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 14.99% | 17.8% | 13.29% | 14.54% | 14.61% | 15.03% | 14.73% | 14.12% | 14.05% | 13.82% | 13.48% | 14.03% | 14.39% | 14.39% | 12.59% | 12.9% | 13.72% | 13.02% | 13.09% | 13.29% | 12.94% | 13.52% | 12.84% | 12.62% | 12.84% | 12.02% | 12.95% | 13.01% | 13.26% | 12.08% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 4M | 6.44B | 1.45B | 154M | 1.19B | 1.24B | 136M | 1.21B | 1.5B | 1.51B | 1.28B | 1.32B | 1.59B | 1.71B | 1.63B | 1.48B | 1.65B | 1.66B | 1.53B | 1.25B | 1.37B | 1.49B | 1.48B | 1.58B | 1.74B | 2.13B | 2.2B | 1.89B | 1.89B | 1.98B | 1.39B |
| Operating Income | -2.61B | -2.82B | 476M | 1.19B | 1.75B | 1.47B | 1.4B | 1.74B | 2.96B | 2.37B | 2.1B | 2.25B | 2.46B | 2.11B | 1.79B | 2.32B | 1.8B | 3.28B | 1.32B | 1.71B | 1.45B | 1.07B | 1.23B | 1.27B | 1.68B | 1.44B | 2.51B | 1.54B | 1.21B | 1.24B | 1.44B |
| Operating Margin % | -10.46% | -11.33% | 2.56% | 6.28% | 8.29% | 7.57% | 7.99% | 9.52% | 12.71% | 10.92% | 10.79% | 10.88% | 10.43% | 9% | 8.19% | 8.91% | 7.15% | 14.04% | 5.34% | 7.81% | 6.6% | 4.93% | 5.95% | 5.74% | 7.02% | 5.44% | 8.9% | 6.27% | 5.05% | 5.05% | 7.14% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | -692.44% | -59.93% | -32.27% | 19.65% | 4.42% | -19.5% | -41.12% | 24.77% | 12.89% | -6.53% | -8.65% | 16.56% | 18.11% | -22.85% | 28.76% | -45.09% | 147.55% | -22.51% | 17.85% | 35.61% | -13.22% | -2.99% | -24.21% | 16.86% | -42.78% | 62.75% | 27.25% | -2.26% | -13.84% | -42.96% |
| EBITDA | 154M | 21M | 1.78B | 2.66B | 2.79B | 2.68B | 2.54B | 3.05B | 4.29B | 3.8B | 3.33B | 3.54B | 3.88B | 3.66B | 3.27B | 3.65B | 3.26B | 4.75B | 2.67B | 2.8B | 2.61B | 2.34B | 2.5B | 2.62B | 3.17B | 3.31B | 4.42B | 3.21B | 2.87B | 2.81B | 2.63B |
| EBITDA Margin % | 0.62% | 0.08% | 9.57% | 14.04% | 13.2% | 13.82% | 14.44% | 16.65% | 18.41% | 17.46% | 17.08% | 17.14% | 16.42% | 15.59% | 14.99% | 14.02% | 12.94% | 20.34% | 10.76% | 12.77% | 11.86% | 10.8% | 12.04% | 11.83% | 13.28% | 12.54% | 15.7% | 13.05% | 11.97% | 11.44% | 13.07% |
| EBITDA Growth % | -91.95% | -98.82% | -32.94% | -4.94% | 4.41% | 5.52% | -16.85% | -28.9% | 12.98% | 14.02% | -6.04% | -8.59% | 5.93% | 11.76% | -10.3% | 12.1% | -31.46% | 77.84% | -4.43% | 7.17% | 11.31% | -6.05% | -4.7% | -17.52% | -3.96% | -25.29% | 37.99% | 11.67% | 2.21% | 6.72% | -25.9% |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 2.77B | 2.84B | 1.3B | 1.47B | 1.04B | 1.21B | 1.13B | 1.31B | 1.33B | 1.42B | 1.23B | 1.29B | 1.41B | 1.55B | 1.49B | 1.33B | 1.46B | 1.47B | 1.35B | 1.09B | 1.16B | 1.27B | 1.26B | 1.35B | 1.5B | 1.87B | 1.92B | 1.67B | 1.66B | 1.57B | 1.19B |
| EBIT | -2.8B | -2.98B | 577M | 803M | 1.91B | 1.43B | 925M | 1.62B | 2.52B | 1.61B | 1.49B | 1.78B | 1.55B | 1.9B | 1.71B | 2.05B | 1.47B | 1.87B | -581M | 2.1B | 3.84B | 881M | 1.09B | 990M | 1.09B | -336M | 1.54B | 989M | 1.04B | 750M | 1.33B |
| Net Interest Income | -191M | -196M | -208M | -231M | -325M | -337M | -445M | -499M | -536M | -572M | -520M | -555M | -607M | -612M | -671M | -541M | -608M | -669M | -492M | -297M | -521M | -595M | -712M | -705M | -785M | -929M | -816M | -541M | -614M | -607M | -530M |
| Interest Income | 124M | 176M | 222M | 190M | 78M | 93M | 151M | 202M | 198M | 186M | 175M | 89M | 70M | 57M | 71M | 55M | 35M | 0 | 80M | 154M | 130M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 315M | 372M | 430M | 421M | 403M | 430M | 596M | 701M | 734M | 758M | 695M | 644M | 677M | 669M | 742M | 596M | 643M | 669M | 572M | 451M | 651M | 595M | 712M | 705M | 785M | 929M | 816M | 541M | 614M | 607M | 530M |
| Other Income/Expense | -511M | -531M | -334M | -827M | -249M | -465M | -998M | -573M | -845M | -1.35B | -1.11B | -1B | -1.79B | -924M | -761M | -721M | -868M | -2.13B | -2.43B | -80M | 1.72B | -784M | -857M | -986M | -1.37B | -2.7B | -1.78B | -1.09B | -782M | -1.1B | -636M |
| Pretax Income | -3.12B | -3.35B | 142M | 361M | 1.5B | 1B | 406M | 1.17B | 2.12B | 1.02B | 993M | 1.25B | 672M | 1.19B | 1.03B | 1.6B | 933M | 1.15B | -1.1B | 1.63B | 3.17B | 286M | 376M | 285M | 306M | -1.26B | 723M | 448M | 429M | 143M | 802M |
| Pretax Margin % | -12.51% | -13.46% | 0.76% | 1.91% | 7.11% | 5.17% | 2.31% | 6.39% | 9.08% | 4.71% | 5.09% | 6.04% | 2.85% | 5.06% | 4.7% | 6.14% | 3.71% | 4.92% | -4.45% | 7.45% | 14.42% | 1.32% | 1.81% | 1.29% | 1.28% | -4.8% | 2.57% | 1.82% | 1.79% | 0.58% | 3.98% |
| Income Tax | -484M | -532M | -415M | 59M | -236M | 188M | 176M | 477M | 445M | -1.08B | 193M | 417M | 123M | -498M | 306M | 311M | 221M | 469M | 162M | 415M | 1.89B | -407M | 114M | -56M | -72M | -270M | 117M | 86M | 95M | 83M | 330M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | 15.5% | 15.88% | -292.25% | 16.34% | -15.68% | 18.78% | 43.35% | 40.73% | 21.02% | -105.85% | 19.44% | 33.39% | 18.3% | -41.88% | 29.77% | 19.46% | 23.69% | 40.78% | -14.67% | 25.46% | 59.57% | -142.31% | 30.32% | -19.65% | -23.53% | 21.34% | 16.18% | 19.2% | 22.14% | 58.04% | 41.15% |
| Net Income | -3.35B | -3.52B | 557M | 302M | 1.5B | 1.75B | 230M | 1.23B | 2.01B | 2.14B | 904M | 938M | 555M | 1.4B | 794M | 1.32B | 691M | 663M | -1.28B | 1.17B | 1.05B | 1.1B | -35M | 315M | 295M | -1.19B | 142M | 183M | 247M | -80M | 303M |
| Net Margin % | -13.42% | -14.12% | 2.99% | 1.6% | 7.11% | 9.05% | 1.31% | 6.69% | 8.63% | 9.86% | 4.64% | 4.54% | 2.35% | 5.94% | 3.63% | 5.08% | 2.74% | 2.84% | -5.16% | 5.34% | 4.77% | 5.07% | -0.17% | 1.42% | 1.23% | -4.51% | 0.5% | 0.74% | 1.03% | -0.33% | 1.5% |
| Net Income Growth % | -946.21% | -731.24% | 84.44% | -79.92% | -14.16% | 661.74% | -81.22% | -39.12% | -6.16% | 137.17% | -3.62% | 69.01% | -60.22% | 75.69% | -39.94% | 91.32% | 4.22% | 151.72% | -209.76% | 11.24% | -4.55% | 3242.86% | -111.11% | 6.78% | 124.83% | -936.62% | -22.4% | -25.91% | 408.75% | -126.4% | -73.72% |
| Net Income (Continuing) | -2.64B | -2.82B | 557M | 302M | 1.74B | 813M | 230M | 694M | 1.67B | 2.11B | 800M | 832M | 549M | 1.69B | 722M | 1.29B | 712M | 681M | -1.27B | 1.22B | 1.28B | 693M | 262M | 341M | 378M | -995M | 606M | 362M | 334M | 60M | 472M |
| Discontinued Operations | -3M | -697M | 0 | 0 | -237M | 941M | 0 | 526M | 345M | 34M | 102M | 85M | -13M | -309M | 77M | 49M | 0 | 0 | -13M | -47M | -232M | 416M | -273M | 57M | 35M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14M | 5M | 21M | 19M | 18M | 25M | 148M | 179M | 332M | 340M | 250M | 232M | 232M | 228M | 213M | 211M | 1.55B | 1.8B | 1.45B | 1.27B | 1.35B | 1.58B | 1.61B | 1.64B | 1.86B |
| EPS (Diluted) | -6.30 | -6.71 | 1.57 | 0.87 | 4.10 | 4.47 | 1.22 | 2.43 | 4.86 | 5.13 | 2.18 | 2.23 | 1.28 | 3.11 | 1.80 | 3.03 | 1.48 | 1.55 | -3.05 | 2.70 | 2.15 | 2.16 | -0.07 | 0.65 | 0.61 | -2.37 | 0.32 | 0.44 | 0.57 | -0.50 | 1.04 |
| EPS Growth % | -643.59% | -527.39% | 80.46% | -78.78% | -8.28% | 266.39% | -49.79% | -50% | -5.26% | 135.32% | -2.24% | 74.22% | -58.84% | 72.78% | -40.59% | 104.73% | -4.52% | 150.82% | -212.96% | 25.58% | -0.46% | 3112.55% | -111.03% | 6.56% | 125.74% | -840.63% | -27.27% | -22.81% | 214% | -148.08% | -76.2% |
| EPS (Basic) | - | -6.71 | 1.60 | 0.83 | 4.14 | 4.50 | 1.23 | 3.10 | 4.91 | 5.19 | 2.20 | 2.25 | 1.30 | 3.15 | 1.82 | 3.06 | 1.61 | 1.56 | -3.05 | 2.72 | 2.21 | 2.26 | -0.07 | 0.63 | -1.83 | -2.50 | 0.32 | 0.44 | 0.60 | -0.20 | 1.04 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 531.8M | 528M | 354.2M | 349.1M | 367M | 392.4M | 395.7M | 398.8M | 414.2M | 417.7M | 415.6M | 420.6M | 432M | 448.1M | 440.2M | 437M | 434.2M | 428M | 421M | 433M | 488.7M | 509.7M | 488.4M | 481.1M | 483M | 482.6M | 450M | 416.1M | 414.2M | 303.45M | 292.6M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 545.46M | 528M | 347.2M | 346.99M | 363.29M | 389.33M | 391.87M | 395.16M | 409.78M | 413.1M | 410.91M | 416.89M | 426.92M | 442.86M | 436.26M | 432.2M | 429.8M | 425M | 421M | 428.9M | 476.1M | 486M | 485.8M | 479.6M | 481.4M | 482.6M | 449.6M | 413M | 411M | 406.7M | 292.1M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | - | 115.44% | 212.58% | 44.75% | 44.52% | 350.43% | 64.98% | 39.21% | 35.87% | 81.08% | 73.03% | 111.71% | 39.71% | 59.95% | 32.3% | 25.33% | 21.12% | - | 37.33% | 46.19% | 44.55% | - | 152.38% | 163.39% | - | 314.79% | 228.42% | 174.49% | - | 96.04% |
Structural margin compression risk
According to the provided financial data, International Paper experienced a significant revenue surge, peaking at 42.9% year-over-year growth in 2025Q2, yet this top-line expansion appears disconnected from bottom-line performance, suggesting that volume gains are being offset by intense pricing pressures and rising input costs across the segment.
The recent revenue acceleration appears driven by inorganic or cyclical factors rather than sustainable organic demand, as evidenced by the subsequent volatility in operating margins. Investors should monitor whether these revenue levels are sustainable or if they represent a temporary peak in a highly cyclical containerboard market.
As reported in the income statement, International Paper maintained gross margins near 30% throughout much of 2025, yet the company simultaneously reported deep operating losses, indicating that the conversion value of its fiber assets is being severely eroded by elevated SG&A and potential non-cash impairment charges.
The divergence between healthy gross margins and negative operating margins suggests that the company's high-fixed-cost structure is failing to achieve necessary absorption levels. This implies that management may be struggling to pass through inflationary input costs to customers, or that the cost of maintaining its massive mill network has become disproportionately high relative to current output.
Based on the quarterly income statement figures, SG&A expenses have trended upward, reaching $1.2 billion in 2025Q2, which significantly outpaced revenue growth and contributed to the erosion of operating income, suggesting that the company's overhead structure is not scaling efficiently with its current, more volatile revenue base.
The lack of expense discipline in the face of fluctuating demand warrants further investigation into whether these costs are structural or related to one-time integration efforts. If SG&A remains elevated while revenue growth normalizes, the company may face continued difficulty in returning to consistent operating profitability.
Analysis of the income statement reveals that International Paper's net income has been marred by extreme quarterly swings, including a $2.4 billion loss in 2025Q4, which suggests that the reported earnings are heavily influenced by non-operating items and asset write-downs rather than core operational performance.
Short-sellers would likely focus on the persistent gap between gross profit and net income, which indicates that the company's underlying business model may be burdened by legacy asset impairments. Investors should be cautious about relying on headline EPS figures, as they appear to mask the true, more strained nature of the company's operational cash generation.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying IP stock.
For fiscal year 2025, International Paper Company (IP) reported total revenue of $24.90B. This represents a 23.6% increase compared to $20.14B in 1996.
International Paper Company (IP) reported a net loss of $3.52B for the fiscal year ending 2025.
International Paper Company (IP) reported an operating income of $-2820.0M, resulting in an operating profit margin of -11.3%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
International Paper Company (IP) generated $7.35B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 29.5%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.