Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Price Target Cut to $7.00 by Analysts at Raymond James

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) had its target price lowered by Raymond James from $7.50 to $7.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday,BayStreet.CA reports.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on MERC. StockNews.com upgraded Mercer International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $7.00 price target on shares of Mercer International in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.25.

Mercer International Stock Up 0.9 %

MERC opened at $6.51 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.65. Mercer International has a 52 week low of $5.33 and a 52 week high of $11.20. The firm has a market cap of $435.33 million, a P/E ratio of -2.30 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 3.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.29) by $0.03. Mercer International had a negative net margin of 9.33% and a negative return on equity of 17.62%. The business had revenue of $502.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $485.84 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.39) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mercer International will post -1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercer International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.61%. Mercer International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -10.60%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MERC. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Mercer International by 1.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 525,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,559,000 after acquiring an additional 8,957 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its position in shares of Mercer International by 505.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 49,483 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $335,000 after purchasing an additional 41,315 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Mercer International by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 36,661 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 6,786 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Mercer International during the third quarter worth approximately $75,000. 85.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.