Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Shares Down 5.6%

Shares of Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) traded down 5.6% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $8.06 and last traded at $8.06. 57,650 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 243,109 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.54.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Mercer International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Raymond James upped their price target on Mercer International from $8.50 to $10.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, TD Securities upped their price objective on Mercer International from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $9.67.

Mercer International Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $9.53 and a 200-day moving average of $9.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 3.74.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $553.43 million for the quarter. Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 26.21% and a negative net margin of 11.27%. As a group, research analysts expect that Mercer International Inc. will post -0.56 EPS for the current year.

Mercer International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 26th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 26th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.61%. Mercer International’s payout ratio is -8.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercer International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mercer International by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 40,488 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $384,000 after purchasing an additional 6,042 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Mercer International in the 1st quarter worth $193,000. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Mercer International in the 1st quarter worth $261,000. 85.79% of the stock is currently owned by 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.