Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) CFO Richard George Short Acquires 6,000 Shares

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) CFO Richard George Short purchased 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $5.70 per share, with a total value of $34,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 51,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,877.40. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Mercer International Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MERC opened at $5.68 on Friday. Mercer International Inc. has a 52 week low of $5.33 and a 52 week high of $11.20. The firm has a market cap of $379.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.66 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.17 and a current ratio of 3.46. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.71.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The basic materials company reported ($0.50) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by ($0.08). Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 17.93% and a negative net margin of 9.90%. The business had revenue of $499.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $482.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.48) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mercer International Inc. will post -1.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercer International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 25th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 25th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.28%. Mercer International’s payout ratio is -8.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercer International

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MERC. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 10,713 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Mercer International during the first quarter worth about $261,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new position in Mercer International during the first quarter valued at about $193,000. 85.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MERC. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Mercer International from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. StockNews.com upgraded Mercer International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, CIBC reduced their target price on shares of Mercer International from $10.00 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mercer International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $9.38.

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.