Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) CEO Estrada Juan Carlos Bueno Acquires 7,800 Shares of Stock

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) CEO Estrada Juan Carlos Bueno bought 7,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $6.60 per share, with a total value of $51,480.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 67,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $446,259. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Mercer International Stock Down 5.3 %

MERC opened at $6.38 on Tuesday. Mercer International Inc. has a 1 year low of $5.33 and a 1 year high of $11.20. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $6.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.17 and a current ratio of 3.46. The company has a market cap of $426.63 million, a PE ratio of -1.86 and a beta of 1.34.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The basic materials company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by ($0.08). Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 17.93% and a negative net margin of 9.90%. The business had revenue of $499.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $482.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.48) EPS. Mercer International’s revenue was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Mercer International Inc. will post -1.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Mercer International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 25th will be given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.70%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 25th. Mercer International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -8.75%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Mercer International by 26.5% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 51,201 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $509,000 after purchasing an additional 10,713 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in Mercer International during the 1st quarter valued at $193,000. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Mercer International during the 1st quarter worth $261,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MERC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Mercer International from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mercer International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, CIBC lowered their price objective on shares of Mercer International from $10.00 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.38.

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.