Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Mercury General Trading Up 1.7 %

MCY opened at $53.57 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.97 billion, a PE ratio of 30.79 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The business has a 50 day moving average of $49.36 and a 200-day moving average of $40.83. Mercury General has a 52 week low of $26.15 and a 52 week high of $54.59.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The insurance provider reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $1.10. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 1.17% and a net margin of 2.08%. Equities research analysts predict that Mercury General will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.317 per share. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 12th. Mercury General’s payout ratio is 72.99%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in Mercury General during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 876 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mercury General in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 23.8% in the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,244 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mercury General in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.