Thu, May 1, 8:57 PM (17 days ago)
**MERCER INTERNATIONAL INC. (MERC, NASDAQ)** **Q1 2025 Financial Summary:** **Revenue & Profit Margins:** - Q1 2025 revenue: $506.974M (down 8% YoY from $553.430M). - Gross profit margin: 15.2% (down from 17.2% in Q1 2024). - Operating income: $6.733M (up from -$448K in Q1 2024). - Net loss: $22.339M (wider than $16.703M in Q1 2024). **Cash Flow:** - Operating cash flow: -$2.989M (improved from -$29.194M in Q1 2024). - Capital expenditures: $20.082M (up from $18.461M in Q1 2024). - Free cash flow: -$23.071M (improved from -$47.655M in Q1 2024). **Earnings Changes:** - EPS (basic and diluted): -$0.33 (wider than -$0.25 in Q1 2024). - Dividend per share: $0.075 (unchanged). **Segment Performance:** - Pulp segment revenue: $381.080M (down 12% YoY). - Solid wood segment revenue: $122.720M (up 3% YoY). - Pulp segment EBITDA: $49.872M (down 27% YoY). - Solid wood segment EBITDA: -$292K (improved from -$895K in Q1 2024). **Trends & Uncertainties:** - Stronger dollar positively impacted costs but negatively affected sales. - Planned maintenance downtime at Celgar mill impacted production and EBITDA. - Higher per unit fiber costs due to strong demand. - Expect modest pulp price increases in Europe and North America, but lower prices in China. - Lumber prices expected to decrease in the U.S. and slightly increase in Europe. - Pallet prices expected to remain flat, and mass timber prices to remain stable. **Future Operations Impact:** - Reduced planned capital expenditures for 2025 to $90M-$100M. - Expect adequate liquidity to finance operations and pay dividends. - Committed to expanding assets and earnings through acquisitions and capital projects. **Market Risks:** - Cyclical nature of pulp and lumber businesses. - Sensitivity to global economic conditions, industry capacity, and foreign exchange rates. - Exposure to interest rate fluctuations and currency exchange rate changes. - Risks related to debt, legal and regulatory, and ownership of shares. **Positive Outlook:** - Strong demand and supply constraints in key markets. - Completed wood room upgrade at Celgar mill to reduce dependence on sawmill residuals and lower per unit fiber costs. - Committed to sustainability and compliance with internationally recognized forestry management standards.