International Paper and Ashland have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day

For Immediate ReleaseChicago, IL – January 16, 2025 – Zacks Equity Research shares International Paper IP as the Bull of the Day and Ashland Inc. ASH as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Coinbase COIN, Blackrock BLK and iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF IBIT.Here is a synopsis of all five stocks.Bull of the Day:International Paper (IP) is a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) that has a C for Value and a D for Growth. The company is a global producer of renewable fiber-based products. Some of those products include packaging goods and other paper related items. Let’s explore more about why this stock is the Bull of the Day.DescriptionInternational Paper Co. engages in the business of producing renewable fiber-based packaging and pulp products with manufacturing operations. It operates through the following segments: Industrial Packaging, Global Cellulose Fibers, and Corporate and Intersegment. The Industrial Packaging segment is involved in creating fiber-based packaging that protects and promotes goods, enables worldwide commerce, and helps keep consumers safe. The Global Cellulose Fibers segment offers a wide range of applications like diapers, towel and tissue products, feminine care, incontinence, and other personal care products that promote health and wellness. The company was founded by Hugh J. Chisholm in 1898 and is headquartered in Memphis, TN.Earnings HistoryWhen I look at a stock, the first thing I do is look to see if the company is beating the number. This tells me right away where the market’s expectations have been for the company and how management has communicated to the market. A stock that consistently beats has management communicating expectations to Wall Street that can be achieved. That is what you want to see.International Paper has a good earnings history with the company topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate in 3 of the last 4 quarters.The most recent earnings print saw the company posted a gain of 44 cents when the consensus was at 24 cents. That 20 cent beat translates into a positive earnings surprise of 83%Over the last four quarters the average earnings surprise works out to be 28%.Earnings Estimates RevisionsEarnings estimate revisions is what the Zacks Rank is all about.Estimates are moving higher for International Paper.Following the recent beat, the estimates for this quarter have held still at $0.06.Next quarter has moved from $0.42 up to $0.44The full year 2024 estimate is down from $1.42 to $1.18.Next year increased from $2.92 to $3.02All of the estimate moves have come in the last 60 days.GrowthI see revenue in 2024 will come in around $18.7B which will end up being a contraction of just under 1%.2025 is calling for sales of $19.6B which represents 4.7% growth.ValuationThe forward PE stands at 18.3x which is a little high given the lack of growth in 2024. The price to book multiple of 2.2x is low enough to keep the value oriented investors interested in this stock. Price to sales comes in just a hair over 1x, which is to be expected as this is more of a commodity based product.Margins are rather thin, as one would expect for a product like this. There basically isn’t a moat for IP, and we have seen operating margins fall from 3.3% to 2.9% over the last two quarters.Bear of the Day:Ashland Inc. is a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) after the company missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate when the last reported. The company is in the specialty chemicals space and services many industries such as the automotive and construction sectors. This article will look at why this stock is a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) as it is the Bear of the Day.DescriptionAshland, Inc. is an additives and specialty ingredients company, which engages in the provision of architectural coatings, construction, energy, food and beverage, nutraceuticals, personal care, and pharmaceutical products. It operates through the following segments: Life Sciences, Personal Care, Specialty Additives, and Intermediates. The Life Sciences segment is involved in pharmaceuticals, nutrition, nutraceuticals, agricultural chemicals, diagnostic films, and fine chemicals. The Personal Care segment consists of biofunctionals, microbial protectants, skin care, sun care, oral care, hair care, and household solutions. The Specialty Additives segment focuses on rheology and performance-enhancing additives serving the architectural coatings, construction, energy, automotive, and various industrial markets. The company was founded in 1924 and is headquartered in Wilmington, DE.Earnings HistoryWhen I look at a stock, the first thing I do is look to see if the company is beating the number. This tells me right away where the market’s expectations have been for the company and how management has communicated to the market. A stock that consistently beats has management communicating expectations to Wall Street that can be achieved. That is what you want to see.In the case of Ashland, I see three beats and one miss of the Zacks Consensus Estimate over the last year. The most recent quarter was a miss with the company posting $1.26 when the consensus was calling for $1.33. This alone does not make the stock a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and it doesn’t make it a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) either.The Zacks Rank does care about the earnings history, but it is much more heavily influenced by the movement of earnings estimates.Earnings EstimatesThe Zacks Rank tells us which stocks are seeing earnings estimates move higher or in this case lower. For HII I see annual estimates moving lower of late.The current fiscal year consensus number moved lower from $4.77 to $4.33 over the last 60 days.The next year has moved from $5.74 to $5.31 over the last 60 days.Negative movement in earnings estimates like that is why this stock is a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).It should be noted that a lot of stocks in the Zacks universe are seeing negative earnings estimate revisions. That means that the stocks that are seeing small but negative earnings estimate revisions are falling to a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).Additional content:Coinbase Primed for Another Winning Year in '25Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock Coinbase is one of the biggest and most well-known cryptocurrency exchange platforms globally. Through Coinbase, retail and institutional traders can buy and sell from a wide variety of crypto assets.Beyond its extensive digital asset offering, Coinbase is lauded as one of the most user-friendly platforms for amateur investors because of its straight-forward user interface (UI) and simple buying process. Coinbase also provides more sophisticated trading features for experienced users, including a professional trading platform and staking, which allows users to earn rewards for holding specific cryptocurrencies.2024 was a landmark year for COIN shares, which nearly doubled. Thus far in 2025, Coinbase investors have endured a pullback over the past few weeks, but the outlook on the stock remains very bullish. The company’s balance sheet is pristine (~5.7 billion in cash on hand), Bitcoin ETF aum continues to balloon (COIN is the custodial exchange for most BTC ETFs), and COIN continues to clobber Wall Street estimates (COIN has beat Zacks Consensus Estimates by an average of 341.36% over the past four quarters).Beyond what was mentioned above, three novel catalysts will help COIN shares to rise again in 2025, including:1. The Trump Administration is Pro-CryptoCoinbase benefits from a new administration more than any other company. Gary Gensler’s SEC has been entangled with lawsuits against Coinbase for years. Brian Armstrong, Coinbase’s CEO, argues that the SEC has failed to provide “regulatory clarity,” and thus, there are no clear rules for crypto firms like Coinbase to follow.Meanwhile, in a recent interview on “The Joe Rogan Experience,” billionaire and crypto investor Marc Andreesen voiced concerns about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), saying that debanking “has been happening to all the crypto entrepreneurs in the last four years” to protect big banks. With Trump coming to power and Armstrong named as a Trump crypto advisor, these concerns will vanish, and the crypto “animal spirits” will be unleashed.2. The Crypto ETF Party Will Rage On2024 was the year that the Bitcoin ETF party began, and traditional Wall Street firms like Blackrock got their piece of the growing crypto pie by launching Bitcoin ETFs. Blackrock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF was the most successful ETF launch in history and is up 119.58%since its inception, as more institutional and retail investors than ever before gain access to the space.Coinbase, the central custodial exchange for most crypto-related ETFs, is a big beneficiary of crypto ETFs as the company collects lucrative exchange fees. With the success of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, financial institutions are likely to expand their ETF offerings to other popular crypto assets like Solana and XRP.3. Stablecoins: An Overlooked CatalystIn a recent podcast, billionaire Chamath Palihapitiya predicted that “Dollar-denominated stablecoins are going to be biggest winners of 2025.” Chamath pointed out that stablecoin usage at the end of the second quarter of 2024 accounted for more than $8 trillion of transaction volume! For those who don’t know, Coinbase and Circle operate one of the largest stable coins, USDC.Finally, Coinbase is likely to beat earnings when it reports in February because it has a best possible Zacks Rank combined with a positive Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) score. This powerful combination produces positive earnings surprises 70% of the time and above-average annual returns on average.Bottom LineA pro-crypto administration, continued crypto ETF rollout, and the growing popularity of stablecoins are reasons to remain bullish on Coinbase into 2025 and beyond.Why Haven't You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?Since 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +7.0 average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +44.9%, +48.4% and +55.2% per year.Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.See Stocks Free >>Media ContactZacks Investment Research800-767-3771 ext. 9339https://www.zacks.comZacks.com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms and Conditions of Service" disclaimer. www.zacks.com/disclaimer.Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss.This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index.Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor StockIt's only 1/9,000th the size of NVIDIA which skyrocketed more than +800% since we recommended it. NVIDIA is still strong, but our new top chip stock has much more room to boom.With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $803 billion by 2028.See This Stock Now for Free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report BlackRock (BLK): Free Stock Analysis Report International Paper Company (IP): Free Stock Analysis Report Ashland Inc. (ASH): Free Stock Analysis Report Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks