IP

International Paper's FY2025 headline is alarming — a net loss of $3.52B (-$6.95 diluted EPS) and -23.7% ROE — but the loss is overwhelmingly non-cash and transformation-related rather than operational. Management's executive summary attributes the loss from continuing operations to a $2.47B non-cash goodwill impairment, $958M of accelerated depreciation tied to asset rationalization, and $626M of restructuring charges. Strip those out and the company generated $2.98B of adjusted EBITDA and $1.70B of operating cash flow. Revenue jumped 49.3% to $23.6B, reflecting the early-2025 DS Smith acquisition (enterprise value ~$9.9B) that roughly doubled the footprint across North America and EMEA.

The story is a multi-year portfolio overhaul. IP applied its 80/20 performance system to actioned roughly $710M of full run-rate cost-out and DS Smith synergies, plus about $510M of run-rate savings in North America from mill and plant closures and $200M in EMEA. It divested Global Cellulose Fibers for $1.5B (closed Q1 2026) to become a pure-play sustainable-packaging company, with proceeds earmarked to reduce debt and protect its investment-grade rating. In January 2026 it announced plans to separate into two regionally focused public companies (North America IP and an EMEA spinoff) within 12-15 months.