Insider Buying: Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Major Shareholder Purchases $236,600.00 in Stock

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) major shareholder Peter Kellogg purchased 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $3.38 per share, for a total transaction of $236,600.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 1,000,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,380,000. The trade was a 7.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Mercer International Stock Down 4.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:MERC opened at $1.56 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2.27. Mercer International Inc. has a twelve month low of $1.48 and a twelve month high of $6.78. The company has a current ratio of 3.05, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.58. The company has a market capitalization of $104.49 million, a PE ratio of -0.21 and a beta of 0.68.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The basic materials company reported ($1.39) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.88) by ($0.51). Mercer International had a negative net margin of 26.65% and a negative return on equity of 81.16%. The company had revenue of $449.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $459.84 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Mercer International Inc. will post -0.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Mercer International

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Iat Reinsurance Co. LTD. grew its position in Mercer International by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Iat Reinsurance Co. LTD. now owns 16,700,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $48,096,000 after purchasing an additional 220,000 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Mercer International by 16.1% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 994,974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,866,000 after purchasing an additional 137,906 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mercer International by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 561,001 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,111,000 after buying an additional 14,603 shares during the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mercer International during the second quarter worth about $1,804,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mercer International by 340.6% during the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 276,837 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $969,000 after buying an additional 214,008 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MERC has been the topic of several research reports. TD Securities lowered Mercer International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Mercer International in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, TD Cowen cut Mercer International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and upped their target price for the company from $2.00 to $2.25 in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $2.95.

About Mercer International

Mercer International Inc is a publicly traded pulp producer headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. Listed on the NASDAQ under the symbol MERC, the company specializes in the manufacture of Northern Bleached Softwood Kraft (NBSK) pulp and dissolving pulp for use in tissue, specialty paper and textile applications.

Mercer’s core business activities include the operation of integrated pulp mills in North America and Europe. Its production portfolio encompasses NBSK pulp, renowned for its strength and versatility, and dissolving pulp, which serves as a key raw material in the manufacture of viscose, cellulose acetate and other specialty products.

The company’s facilities are located in British Columbia and the U.S.