Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Given New $10.50 Price Target at TD Securities

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) had its price target increased by TD Securities from $10.00 to $10.50 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, BayStreet.CA reports. They currently have a hold rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

MERC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Mercer International from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. CIBC raised Mercer International from a sector underperform rating to a neutral rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $8.00 to $9.00 in a report on Friday, January 12th. Raymond James upped their price objective on Mercer International from $7.50 to $8.50 and gave the company a market perform rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Mercer International to a sell rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $9.33.

Mercer International Stock Up 1.3 %

MERC opened at $9.57 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.82, a quick ratio of 2.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $9.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.06. Mercer International has a 1-year low of $7.01 and a 1-year high of $10.42. The stock has a market cap of $636.69 million, a PE ratio of -2.63 and a beta of 1.38.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 16th. The basic materials company reported ($0.80) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.74) by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $470.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $508.46 million. Mercer International had a negative net margin of 12.14% and a negative return on equity of 29.17%. Mercer International’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.30 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Mercer International will post -0.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Mercer International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 27th were paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 26th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. Mercer International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -8.24%.

Institutional Trading of Mercer International

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MERC. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Mercer International by 2.9% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 436,073 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,519,000 after purchasing an additional 12,335 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mercer International by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 264,007 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,265,000 after acquiring an additional 31,879 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in shares of Mercer International by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 68,883 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $591,000 after acquiring an additional 5,313 shares in the last quarter. State of Tennessee Treasury Department increased its stake in Mercer International by 83.8% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Treasury Department now owns 51,160 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $595,000 after acquiring an additional 23,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Asset Management Americas Inc. raised its position in Mercer International by 21.5% during the third quarter. UBS Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 50,254 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $618,000 after purchasing an additional 8,906 shares in the last quarter. 85.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Mercer International

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.