Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Thursday.

Mercury General Stock Performance

MCY opened at $68.58 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The company has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a PE ratio of 6.80 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $72.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.55. Mercury General has a 1 year low of $36.96 and a 1 year high of $80.72.

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

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 12th were paid a dividend of $0.317 per share. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 12th. Mercury General’s payout ratio is 12.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Heidi C. Sullivan sold 1,076 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total value of $83,153.28. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 35.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mercury General

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Mercury General by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 13,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $712,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Mercury General by 2.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,660 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $832,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Mercury General by 4.6% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,287 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $648,000 after buying an additional 454 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 47,882 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,016,000 after buying an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Mercury General by 72.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,151 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercury General Company Profile

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.