TD Securities Downgrades Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) to Strong Sell

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) was downgraded by research analysts at TD Securities from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on MERC. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Mercer International in a research note on Monday, December 29th. TD Cowen cut shares of Mercer International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $2.00 to $2.25 in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Mercer International from $3.00 to $2.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $2.95.

Mercer International Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MERC opened at $2.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $2.13 and a 200 day moving average of $2.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 3.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.58. The company has a market capitalization of $138.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.28 and a beta of 0.72. Mercer International has a 52 week low of $1.48 and a 52 week high of $8.28.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last announced 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). The firm had revenue of $449.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $459.84 million. Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 81.16% and a negative net margin of 26.65%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Mercer International will post -0.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Mercer International

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MERC. Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new position in Mercer International in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,804,000. Iat Reinsurance Co. LTD. raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 220,000 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Mercer International by 340.6% during the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 276,837 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $969,000 after acquiring an additional 214,008 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mercer International by 16.1% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new stake in shares of Mercer International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $244,000. 85.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.