International Paper (NYSE:IP) misses Q3 2026 revenue estimates

What happened

International Paper missed Wall Street's revenue expectations in Q3 2026, with revenue flat year on year at $6.20 billion against analyst estimates of $6.29 billion. Adjusted profit of $0.37 per share beat estimates of $0.29.

Confirmed

Global impact / market context

Flat sales mean the company is not growing, even as cost cuts lift profit per share. A $1.4 billion goodwill impairment, a write-down of acquired asset value, pushed operating results negative, and free cash flow turned negative, which means the business spent more cash than it generated.

Analyst inference

Packaging companies are managing soft demand, which the CEO called persistent macro headwinds. Investors face a split picture: profit per share beat expectations on cost cuts, but weak sales and negative free cash flow, meaning cash spent exceeded cash received, raise questions about how durable the improvement is.

Analyst inference

What to watch

1. Free cash flow was negative $267 million, down from positive $150 million a year earlier, so watch whether cash generation recovers as restructuring and cost-out efforts continue. Confirmed
2. Management's plan to build a structurally lower-cost business should be watched through future profit per sale and whether savings offset continued weak revenue. Proposed
3. Watch North American operational performance and pricing actions the CEO cited, since those determine whether flat revenue eventually turns into growth and supports the share price. Analyst inference

Evidence

• stockstory.org