Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) Share Price Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U)’s stock price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $6.58 and traded as high as $6.67. Mercer International shares last traded at $6.61, with a volume of 197,993 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Raymond James cut their price target on Mercer International from $7.50 to $7.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mercer International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.25.

Mercer International Trading Down 1.7 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $6.77 and a 200 day moving average of $6.58. The company has a market capitalization of $435.33 million, a P/E ratio of -5.13 and a beta of 1.20. 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) (TSE:MRI.U) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $488.41 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $497.00 million. Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 5.18% and a negative net margin of 4.17%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mercer International Inc. will post -0.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercer International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 26th will be given a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 26th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.61%. Mercer International’s dividend payout ratio is currently -23.62%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Mercer International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Entropy Technologies LP boosted its position in shares of Mercer International by 56.0% during the fourth quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 17,270 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $112,000 after buying an additional 6,200 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 6,786 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 41,315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Mercer International by 1.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 525,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,559,000 after acquiring an additional 8,957 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.79% of the company’s stock.

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.