Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Strong Sell” from Analysts

Shares of Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Strong Sell” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and two have given a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $1.85.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD lowered their target price on shares of Mercer International from $1.00 to $0.50 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Mercer International from $1.25 to $1.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Mercer International from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Mercer International in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th.

Insider Activity at Mercer International

In other Mercer International news, major shareholder Peter R. Kellogg bought 105,000 shares of Mercer International stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $0.97 per share, with a total value of $101,850.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 1,957,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,898,290. This represents a 5.67% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders purchased 1,000,000 shares of company stock valued at $932,900 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MERC. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Mercer International by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 994,974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,866,000 after buying an additional 137,906 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 14,603 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mercer International in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,804,000. Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mercer International by 340.6% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 276,837 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $969,000 after acquiring an additional 214,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in shares of Mercer International in the second quarter worth approximately $244,000. 85.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mercer International Price Performance

NASDAQ:MERC opened at $0.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.58, a current ratio of 2.17 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $0.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $1.50. Mercer International has a 1-year low of $0.64 and a 1-year high of $4.47. The firm has a market cap of $52.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.10 and a beta of 0.52.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.78) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.74) by ($0.04). Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 136.20% and a negative net margin of 28.51%.The firm had revenue of $489.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $493.00 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Mercer International will post -2.21 EPS for the current year.

Mercer International Company Profile

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.