Wall Street Zen Upgrades Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) to “Sell”

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on MERC. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce dropped their target price on shares of Mercer International from $1.50 to $1.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. TD decreased their price target on shares of Mercer International from $0.40 to $0.15 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Mercer International in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Mercer International from $1.00 to $0.75 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and a consensus price target of $1.13.

Mercer International Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MERC opened at $0.47 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $31.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.06 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $0.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.58. Mercer International has a twelve month low of $0.47 and a twelve month high of $3.38.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported ($1.13) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.95) by ($0.18). Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 352.57% and a negative net margin of 27.86%.The business had revenue of $460.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $476.00 million. Research analysts predict that Mercer International will post -3.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Mercer International

In other news, major shareholder Peter R. Kellogg bought 136,000 shares of Mercer International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $0.86 per share, with a total value of $116,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,334,231 shares in the company, valued at $1,147,438.66. This trade represents a 11.35% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders acquired 488,743 shares of company stock valued at $433,515 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mercer International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jump Financial LLC lifted its holdings 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 worth $969,000 after acquiring an additional 214,008 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in shares of Mercer International during the 2nd quarter valued at about $244,000. Gabelli Funds LLC bought a new stake in Mercer International in the second quarter valued at about $1,804,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Mercer International by 16.1% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 994,974 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,866,000 after acquiring an additional 137,906 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Mercer International by 2.7% in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.79% of the company’s stock.

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.