Mercer International (MERC) Set to Announce Quarterly Earnings on Thursday

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) is set to release its earnings data after the market closes on Thursday, October 31st. Parties interested in listening to the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

Mercer International (NASDAQ:MERC) (TSE:MRI.U) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The basic materials company reported ($0.50) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $499.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $482.35 million. Mercer International had a negative return on equity of 17.93% and a negative net margin of 9.90%. Mercer International’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.48) earnings per share. On average, analysts expect Mercer International to post $-1 EPS for the current fiscal year and $0 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Mercer International Price Performance

MERC opened at $6.11 on Thursday. Mercer International has a 12-month low of $5.33 and a 12-month high of $11.20. The company has a market cap of $408.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.78 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 3.46, a quick ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.05.

Mercer International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 25th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 25th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.91%. Mercer International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -8.75%.

Insider Transactions at Mercer International

In other news, CFO Richard George Short purchased 6,000 shares of Mercer International stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $5.70 per share, with a total value of $34,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,877.40. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Estrada Juan Carlos Bueno bought 7,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.60 per share, for a total transaction of $51,480.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 67,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $446,259. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Richard George Short purchased 6,000 shares of Mercer International stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $5.70 per share, with a total value of $34,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,877.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 41,300 shares of company stock worth $252,650. Corporate insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MERC shares. CIBC decreased their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Mercer International from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Mercer International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.