Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning.

Mercury General Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of MCY opened at $72.07 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $70.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $62.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.14 and a beta of 0.84. Mercury General has a 52 week low of $36.96 and a 52 week high of $80.72.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $1.39. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 18.04% and a net margin of 10.18%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Mercury General will post 6.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be paid a $0.317 dividend. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 12th. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Heidi C. Sullivan sold 1,076 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total transaction of $83,153.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 35.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mercury General

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Mercury General by 132.3% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 27,917 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,758,000 after buying an additional 15,898 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Mercury General by 20.5% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 52,688 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,800,000 after purchasing an additional 8,976 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Mercury General by 1,753.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,168 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 2,051 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc bought a new position in Mercury General during the 2nd quarter worth about $515,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Mercury General by 29.8% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 37,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,355,000 after purchasing an additional 8,578 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

About Mercury General

Mercury General Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in writing personal automobile insurance in the United States. The company also writes homeowners, commercial automobile, commercial property, mechanical protection, and umbrella insurance products. Its automobile insurance products include collision, property damage, bodily injury, comprehensive, personal injury protection, underinsured and uninsured motorist, and other hazards; and homeowners insurance products comprise dwelling, liability, personal property, and other coverages.