Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. CIBC reduced their target price on Mercer International from $10.00 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Mercer International from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.38.

Mercer International Price Performance

Shares of Mercer International stock opened at $6.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.17, a current ratio of 3.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $419.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.83 and a beta of 1.34. Mercer International has a twelve month low of $5.33 and a twelve month high of $11.20. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.11.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The basic materials company reported ($0.50) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $499.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $482.35 million. Mercer International had a negative net margin of 9.90% and a negative return on equity of 17.93%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.48) earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Mercer International will post -1.15 EPS for the current year.

Mercer International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 25th were paid a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 25th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.78%. Mercer International’s payout ratio is -8.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mercer International news, Director Rainer Rettig bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $6.24 per share, for a total transaction of $31,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 42,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,969.12. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CFO Richard George Short acquired 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $5.70 per share, for a total transaction of $34,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,382 shares in the company, valued at $292,877.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rainer Rettig acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $6.24 per share, with a total value of $31,200.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 42,463 shares in the company, valued at $264,969.12. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 41,300 shares of company stock worth $252,650 in the last ninety days. 4.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mercer International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Everence Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mercer International in the 1st quarter valued at $261,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new position in Mercer International in the first quarter valued at about $193,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mercer International by 26.5% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 51,201 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $509,000 after purchasing an additional 10,713 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.79% of the company’s stock.

About Mercer International

Mercer International Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) and northern bleached hardwood kraft (NBHK) pulp worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Pulp and Solid Wood. It manufactures, sells, and distributes pulp, electricity, and chemicals through pulp mills.