By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC – Get Free Report) (TSE:MRI.U) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 337,500 shares, a decline of 20.3% from the November 30th total of 423,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 394,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days. Currently, 0.9% of the company’s shares are short sold.
Mercer International Stock Down 1.5 %
NASDAQ:MERC traded down $0.10 on Friday, hitting $6.48. The stock had a trading volume of 222,098 shares, compared to its average volume of 353,716. Mercer International has a 1 year low of $5.33 and a 1 year high of $11.20. The stock has a market cap of $433.32 million, a P/E ratio of -2.29 and a beta of 1.32. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09, a quick ratio of 2.39 and a current ratio of 3.79.
Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC – Get Free Report) (TSE:MRI.U) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $485.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.39) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Mercer International will post -1.62 earnings per share for the current year.
Mercer International Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Mercer International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -10.60%.
Institutional Trading of Mercer International
Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Mercer International in the third quarter valued at $75,000. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its position in Mercer International by 505.8% during the third 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 lifted its stake in Mercer International by 22.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 36,661 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 6,786 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mercer International by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 525,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,559,000 after purchasing an additional 8,957 shares in the last quarter. 85.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
MERC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Mercer International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $7.00 price target on shares of Mercer International in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $9.13.
View Our Latest Report on Mercer International
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.
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