Clearwater Paper Corporation (CLW) AI Stock Analysis

Clearwater Paper Corporation manufactures and supplies bleached paperboards, consumer tissues, and parent roll tissues. Headquartered in Spokane, Washington, the company operates via two primary segments: Pulp and Paperboard, and Consumer Products. The Pulp and Paperboard division produces folding cartons, liquid packaging, cups, plates, blister and carded packaging items, and softwood pulp, while providing custom sheeting, slitting, and cutting services. The Consumer Products segment manufactures at-home tissue products including bath tissues, paper towels, facial tissues, and napkins, as well as away-from-home tissues and recycled fiber products for grocery stores, club retailers, mass merchants, and discount stores.

Clearwater Paper experienced revenue fluctuations in recent years, falling 45.4% in FY2023 to $1.14B before recovering 21.8% to $1.38B in FY2024 and 12.4% to $1.56B in FY2025. Over the five years from FY2020 to FY2025, revenue contracted at a CAGR of -3.6%. Profitability has also varied, shifting from net income of $107.7M in FY2023 to a net loss of -$110.9M in FY2024 and -$18.6M in FY2025. Gross margin stood at 7.4% in FY2025. For the trailing twelve months, revenue was $1.52B with an operating margin of -10.3%. In the latest quarter ended June 30, 2026, quarterly revenue fell 4.3% year-over-year, while quarterly earnings grew 1025.3%.

As of June 30, 2026, Clearwater Paper had $95.4M in cash and short-term investments and $361.1M in total debt, yielding net debt of $265.7M. Total assets stood at $1.57B, and shareholders' equity was $794.1M, representing a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 2.29. For FY2025, operating cash flow was $12,300 and capital expenditures totaled $88,800, leading to free cash flow of -$76,500. The company allocated $17.2M to share buybacks in FY2025.

Clearwater Paper trades at a forward P/E of 10.9x, below the 13.4x forward P/E median of its US-listed Basic Materials peers. Its price-to-sales ratio is 0.2x compared to the peer median of 1.8x, and its price-to-book ratio is 0.4x. However, its EV to EBITDA multiple is 75.0x, significantly higher than the peer median of 10.5x. Over the past year, CLW stock delivered a return of 0.6%, lagging the 16.8% return for the S&P 500 benchmark. Over five years, the stock fell 47.4%, while the S&P 500 gained 83.0%.

Wall Street coverage consists of 1 Buy and 3 Hold ratings, with no Sell recommendations. The mean price target is $22.25, representing a 15.3% premium to the last close of $19.30 on October 16, 2026. For the current fiscal year ending December 31, 2026, analysts estimate an EPS of -$3.72 on revenue of $1.50B. For the next fiscal year, 3 analysts project revenue of $1.56B and an EPS of -$1.17. Clearwater Paper beat EPS estimates in 2 of the last 4 quarters, with next earnings scheduled for October 26, 2026.

This page is an AI-written research summary of Clearwater Paper Corporation (CLW). The text was generated on October 30, 2026 from Quotelinks data as of October 16, 2026 (company profile, annual results, latest balance sheet, valuation, price performance and analyst estimates). An automatic check rejects any draft that contains a figure not found in that data. It is not investment advice; verify figures on the linked tabs before making decisions.

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