Analysts Set Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) PT at $4.25

Shares of Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) have received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the five analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $4.25.

MERC has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Securities reduced their price objective on Mercer International from $3.50 to $3.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. CIBC reduced their price objective on Mercer International from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Mercer International in a research note on Saturday, September 27th.

Insider Activity at Mercer International

In related news, Director Linda J. Welty acquired 10,000 shares of Mercer International stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $3.09 per share, with a total value of $30,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 36,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,136.10. The trade was a 38.04% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Peter R. Kellogg acquired 760,000 shares of Mercer International stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $3.25 per share, for a total transaction of $2,470,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 2,300,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,475,000. The trade was a 49.35% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 772,000 shares of company stock worth $2,506,880 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its position in shares of Mercer International by 943.3% during the first quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 20,470 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 18,508 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in shares of Mercer International during the second quarter valued at approximately $244,000. Jump Financial LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $969,000 after buying an additional 214,008 shares during the period. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mercer International during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,804,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.79% of the company’s stock.

Mercer International Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of MERC stock opened at $2.82 on Friday. Mercer International has a 12-month low of $2.59 and a 12-month high of $8.28. The company has a current ratio of 3.10, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $3.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $188.88 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.73 and a beta of 0.96.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported ($1.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.73) by ($0.56). Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 23.88% and a negative net margin of 5.60%.The firm had revenue of $453.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $514.46 million. Equities research analysts predict that Mercer International will post -0.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercer International Company Profile

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.