International Paper (IP) is trading higher today after a fresh analyst upgrade sparked renewed buying interest. Wells Fargo moved the shares to Overweight from Equal Weight and raised its price target to $39 from $38, framing the setup as improving as operational execution and the company’s restructuring path become clearer.

The timing is notable because it follows IP’s late-April quarterly update, when investors were focused on volumes, costs, and the credibility of near-term financial targets. With the stock having been pressured around earnings, an upgrade can act as a positioning reset: it signals that at least one major firm sees risk/reward turning favorable even before a full packaging demand recovery arrives.

IP is in the middle of a multi-year transformation following the DS Smith acquisition, including divestitures and a plan to separate its North American and EMEA packaging operations into two public companies over the next 12–15 months. That corporate roadmap has become a central part of the equity story, as investors weigh whether a simpler structure can improve accountability, margins, and capital allocation.