Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Announces Earnings Results

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The insurance provider reported $3.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.99, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 33.38% and a net margin of 14.77%.

Mercury General Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of Mercury General stock traded down $2.93 on Thursday, hitting $106.68. 126,969 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 270,297. Mercury General has a 52-week low of $69.82 and a 52-week high of $113.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market cap of $5.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.32 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $104.99 and its 200 day moving average is $96.81.

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be given a $0.3175 dividend. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 10th. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.51%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Mercury General by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,103,088 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $197,816,000 after purchasing an additional 23,353 shares in the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP raised its stake in Mercury General by 12.8% during the second quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 2,054,504 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $138,350,000 after buying an additional 232,721 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Mercury General by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 408,116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $38,387,000 after buying an additional 17,306 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Mercury General by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 346,343 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $22,917,000 after acquiring an additional 6,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park West Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Mercury General by 16.6% during the 4th quarter. Park West Asset Management LLC now owns 329,435 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,987,000 after acquiring an additional 46,907 shares in the last quarter. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MCY shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mercury General in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mercury General from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $100.00.

About Mercury General

Mercury General Corporation is a holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, that underwrites and markets property and casualty insurance products through its principal subsidiary, Mercury Insurance Company. Established in 1961, the company has built a reputation for offering a broad range of personal and commercial lines, with a focus on automobile coverage. Mercury General operates in key U.S. markets, deploying a mix of independent agents and direct distribution channels to serve policyholders.

The company’s product portfolio includes personal automobile insurance, homeowners and renters policies, as well as commercial automobile, business liability and umbrella insurance.