Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) Major Shareholder Buys $124,322.40 in Stock

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC - Get Free Report) TSE: MRI.U major shareholder Peter R. Kellogg bought 33,420 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $3.72 per share, with a total value of $124,322.40. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 860,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,199,200. The trade was a 4.04% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company's stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Mercer International Trading Up 8.7%

Shares of Mercer International stock traded up $0.32 during trading on Thursday, hitting $4.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,025,588 shares, compared to its average volume of 453,138. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.44, a current ratio of 3.25 and a quick ratio of 1.98. Mercer International Inc. has a 52 week low of $3.20 and a 52 week high of $8.57. The stock has a market cap of $267.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.96 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $3.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.36.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC - Get Free Report) TSE: MRI.U last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported ($0.33) EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $506.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $508.42 million. Mercer International had a negative net margin of 4.55% and a negative return on equity of 12.07%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mercer International Inc. will post -0.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercer International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.50%. Mercer International's dividend payout ratio is currently -22.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on MERC. TD Securities lowered their price objective on shares of Mercer International from $5.50 to $4.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Mercer International from $7.00 to $5.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. CIBC reduced their price objective on shares of Mercer International from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Mercer International from $7.00 to $5.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mercer International has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $4.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercer International

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Mercer International stock. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its position in Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC - Free Report) TSE: MRI.U by 943.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,470 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 18,508 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP's holdings in Mercer International were worth $126,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC. 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.