Top Materials Stocks Of Gates Capital: Eagle Materials, Inc. (EXP), Mercer International Inc. (MERC), W. R. Grace & Co (GRA)

Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) is another material stock in the top 10 picks of Jeffrey Gates. The investment firm reported ownership of 10.42 million shares of the company valued at $142.52 million. Mercer is a Canadian company that produces pulp. The company reported a net income of $16.4 million or $0.25 per diluted share for the second quarter of 2015 higher than estimates of $0.20, although the revenue of $267 million, was below the estimates. The decline of revenue came as Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) faced lower pulp sales leading to a 6.4% annual decline in revenue. Jonathan Kolatch of Redwood Capital Management holds some 2.11 million shares of Mercer International Inc. (NASDAQ:MERC) valued at $28.82 million, according to its latest 13F filing.

W. R. Grace & Co (NYSE:GRA) is a specialty chemicals and material manufacturer that operates through multiple segments. Gates Capital Management disclosed a position worth $138.78 million in the company that contains 1.38 million shares. Recently, the basic material company has announced the spin-off of its construction arm into a new publicly traded company, GCP Applied Technologies. The new company will have 70 manufacturing sites worldwide with nearly 2,400 employees of W. R. Grace & Co (NYSE:GRA) under its belt. Under the terms of the transaction, W. R. Grace & Co (NYSE:GRA)’s shareholders will receive one share of GCP Applied Technologies for every share of W. R. Grace & Co. Iridian Asset Management, led by David Cohen and Harold Levy, is the largest shareholder of W. R. Grace & Co (NYSE:GRA) in our database with 6.18 million shares worth $619.40 million at the end of the second quarter.

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