Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Reaches New 1-Year High After Dividend Announcement

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $11.20 and last traded at $10.49, with a volume of 31229 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.81.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 26th will be given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 26th. Mercer International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -8.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MERC. TD Securities upped their target price on shares of Mercer International from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Mercer International from $8.50 to $10.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Mercer International from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Mercer International to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $9.67.

Mercer International Stock Down 2.8 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $9.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.25. The stock has a market cap of $702.59 million, a P/E ratio of -3.06 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 3.82, a quick ratio of 2.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $553.43 million for the quarter. Mercer International had a negative net margin of 11.27% and a negative return on equity of 25.20%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mercer International Inc. will post -0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercer International

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mercer International by 26.5% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 51,201 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $509,000 after buying an additional 10,713 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mercer International in the 1st quarter valued at $261,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Mercer International in the 1st quarter valued at $193,000. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its stake in shares of Mercer International by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 13,291 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 2,182 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.