Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $1.13 According to Brokerages

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) has received an average recommendation of “Strong Sell” from the six ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have issued a hold rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $1.13.

MERC has been the topic of a number of research reports. TD dropped their target price on Mercer International from $0.40 to $0.15 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce decreased their price target on shares of Mercer International from $1.50 to $1.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered 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 research report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mercer International from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Mercer International in a research report on Monday.

Mercer International Stock Performance

Shares of MERC stock opened at $0.32 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.04 and a beta of 0.48. Mercer International has a 1-year low of $0.31 and a 1-year high of $2.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $0.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $0.84.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported ($1.13) earnings per share (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 analysts’ expectations of $476.00 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Mercer International will post -3.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercer International

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its position in Mercer International by 773.9% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 161,818 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 143,301 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Mercer International in the 2nd quarter worth about $67,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Mercer International in the 2nd quarter worth about $798,000. Atlas FRM LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mercer International during the 2nd quarter worth about $393,882. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Mercer International during the 2nd quarter worth about $379,000. 85.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Mercer International

Mercer International Inc (NASDAQ: MERC) is a forest-products company focused primarily on the production and sale of northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp. Its pulp is used by manufacturers of tissue, printing and writing papers, specialty papers, packaging, and other paper-based products.

The company operates three large-scale pulp mills: Mercer Celgar in Castlegar, British Columbia, Canada, and Mercer Stendal and Mercer Rosenthal in Germany. These facilities serve customers in North America, Europe, and other international markets.