Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Price Target Cut to $1.25 by Analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) had its price target lowered by Royal Bank Of Canada from $2.00 to $1.25 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on MERC. TD Cowen downgraded Mercer International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $2.00 to $2.25 in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Mercer International in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, TD Securities downgraded Mercer International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mercer International has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $2.80.

Mercer International Stock Performance

Shares of MERC opened at $1.04 on Thursday. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $1.56 and a 200 day moving average of $1.96. Mercer International has a 12 month low of $1.00 and a 12 month high of $5.15. The company has a market capitalization of $69.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.14 and a beta of 0.77.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercer International

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Mercer International by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 561,001 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,111,000 after purchasing an additional 14,603 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new stake in Mercer International during the second quarter worth about $244,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Mercer International by 16.1% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 994,974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,866,000 after purchasing an additional 137,906 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 214,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iat Reinsurance Co. LTD. lifted its stake in Mercer International by 1.3% during the third 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. 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.